Team India, fresh from a fair tour of South Africa, now sets their sights on a T20I series. They will play three matches against Afghanistan, beginning at home. The first game is set for January 11 at Mohali. Before the World Cup in June, this is their sole T20I assignment.
Team India’s recent T20I performances have varied. They’ve seen a tied series in South Africa. They also experienced an unexpected loss in the West Indies. But they claimed wins against Australia and Ireland.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan are coming off a final run in the Asian Games, the high of a magnificent showing in the ODI World Cup and the recent T20I series win against the UAE.
The Afghans thrive on upsetting top-ranked oppositions in the 20-over format, as seen by their 2-1 series triumph over Pakistan last year, despite never having tasted victory against India in T20Is.
India will be the early favorites, but they should be cautious of Afghanistan’s arsenal and several match-winners. Having said that, here are three things India has to perform in the first Twenty20 International to beat Afghanistan.
1. India’s plan to tackle Afghanistan’s formidable spin attack
It goes without saying that Afghanistan’s greatest chance of upsetting the Indian hitters will be to deploy their elite spinners. The Afghans still have some tweakers in their armor to cause trouble, even in the absence of their talisman, Rashid Khan.
Thanks to the IPL, the visitors have three players with expertise on Indian pitches: Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Noor Ahmad. Afghanistan has a spin foursome unlike very few teams when you add in the leggie Qais Ahmad, who took the most wickets in their most recent series victory against the UAE.
The versatility of Afghanistan’s spinners allows them to be effective at various points during an innings. The other three, particularly Noor and Qais, may bowl in the middle and even late stages of the innings, but Mujeeb often supports the powerplay.
They would, however, be well to recall the crushing performance of Indian captain Rohit Sharma, who scored 131 runs off of 84 deliveries during their 2023 World Cup match. The way he and Mujeeb square up in the first overs might determine a lot about how the game turns out.
In the 2019 World Cup game, the Indian cricket team faced a significant setback when their captain was dismissed by an off-spinner. After that, they only managed to score 224 in their 50 overs.
The task becomes tougher for Indian batters minus Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya. They have limited experience against Afghan spinners. So, dominating the skilled Afghan spinners might just put India on the winning path.
2. India’s spinners can exploit Mohali’s large boundaries against Afghanistan’s big hitters
In the opening match in Mohali, India should draft a playing XI that is strong on spin, despite having just three specialist pacers and up to four spinners. India has the perfect opportunity to employ their three spinners sparingly against the Afghanistan heavyweights with to the venue’s enormous boundaries.
Prominent figures like as Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, and Azmatullah Omarzai are renowned for their ability to draw boundaries and exert subtle pressure, making them extremely dangerous when they’re on their game.
However, India may find themselves in deep water if they employ the wrist spin of Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi against the powerful three. This is because of the boundary dimensions at Mohali.
It will be beneficial for Rohit Sharma to remain astute and save a large number of overs from the spinners for the Afghanistan middle and lower order. Winning that game will most likely guarantee that the visitors’ hitting innings will be derailed, increasing the Indians’ chances of winning.
3. Dismiss the dangerous Rahmanullah Gurbaz early
Even if a few batters on the Afghanistan team are becoming more significant, wicket-keeper Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s play remains a major factor in their success.
In their most recent T20I series victory against UAE, the 22-year-old was the top run scorer with 141 runs at an average of 47. Gurbaz was Afghanistan’s top run scorer even in their most spectacular Twenty20 International series victory over Pakistan last year.
When that series culminated in the ODI World Cup, it was half-centuries from Gurbaz that enabled Afghanistan to defeat Pakistan and England in their two most thrilling victories.
On any given day, he can score quickly against any bowling attack, making him a formidable player. In their last two Twenty20 International matches against Afghanistan, Team India did a great job of holding him to an average of less than 10.
And in order to prevent Afghanistan from getting out to a quick start and maintain their strong middle order, they will need to keep up that pattern.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz influence in Afghanistan’s T20I victories is evident as he averages over 31 at a strike rate of over 138, but in their losses, the average drops to around 20.
Against the skilled Afghanistan opener, it is crucial that the inexperienced Indian pacers are accurate from the start.
