Afghanistan have won the toss in Chennai and, with the series already gone, decided they might as well get the runs on the board first. It is the third and final ODI, India are 2-0 up, and both sides have reached for the team sheet in search of something different.
Seven changes in all – four for Afghanistan, three for India – tell you no one is entirely settled. Ryan ten Doeschate, now India’s assistant coach, put it plainly yesterday: “The team will always be picked on balance and role specificity.” Chennai tends to reward exactly that sort of thinking, so India have bulked up on multi-skill players.
India’s ins and outs
In come Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harsh Dubey and Prasidh Krishna. Out go Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav and the unlucky Harshit Rana, who had only just returned from knee surgery. Reddy is pencilled in at No.6, Dubey at No.8, which means India bat deep while still keeping three frontline seamers. Shubman Gill stays at No.3 and also stands in as captain; Ishan Kishan slides up to take KL Rahul’s spot at five.
Gill admitted at the toss he would have batted first too. “Conditions look fairly dry. We’d have liked a crack up front, but no complaints,” he said.
Afghanistan’s shuffle
Hashmatullah Shahidi, searching for a consolation win, has recalled the experience of Mohammad Nabi and the power-hitting plus seam of Azmatullah Omarzai. Left-arm quick Fareed Ahmad and seamer Ziaur Rahman also return. Sediqullah Atal, Nangeyalia Kharote, Mohammad Saleem and Bilal Sami sit this one out.
“It’s a dry, hard surface,” Shahidi observed. “We hope to put India under scoreboard pressure.” With Rashid Khan present as the trump card, the visitors have more batting depth than in the first two games and, crucially, three seamers who can take the new ball or bowl at the death.
Team line-ups
India: Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill (capt), Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Harsh Dubey, Gurnoor Brar, Prasidh Krishna, Prince Yadav.
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Darwish Rasooli, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Ziaur Rahman, Fareed Ahmad.
Why it matters
The series might be settled, yet places are still very much up for grabs with a Champions Trophy qualification race ticking in the background. India’s decision to trial two debutant all-rounders on a slow surface hints at longer-term planning; Afghanistan’s mix-and-match XI is about immediate pride but also about learning who travels well in demanding conditions.
First ball isn’t far away. Chennai is hot, the surface already showing cracks, and both camps will reckon they’re one good spell or one meaningful partnership away from ending the tour on their own terms.
