Mohammed Shami has been ignored yet again. On the other hand, Lord Shardul Thakur has got his chance in the India Playing XI. Veteran spinner Ravi Ashwin has been dropped to the bench. India takes on Afghanistan in a crucial World Cup clash at Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
Mohammed Shami who unleashed his fury against Afghanistan in the 2019 World Cup by scalping a hattrick has been sidelined for a second match in a row.
“It (IND vs AUS) was a good game for us, hopefully we can repeat that and keep the momentum going forward. Ashwin misses out, Shardul Thakur comes in for him,” said Rohit Sharma at the Toss.
Initially, there were debates that Ashwin should pave the way for Mohammed Shami for this crucial encounter. In the previous game, the pitch at Cheupak favoured the spinners and as a result, the Men in Blue went to the battle with 3 spinners with the likes of Ashwin, Kuldeep, and Jadeja.
But the same cannot be claimed for the pitch of the Delhi game. It was understood that Shami will be included in the squad with Ashwin being dropped for the game. The pitch in Delhi favors batters and provides little assistance to the spinners. But in a shocking change, it was Shardul Thakur who got the nod ahead of Shami.
After no-show at World Cup opener, BCCI wakes up for IND vs PAK pre-match ceremony
Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and decided to bat in the World Cup match against India at Arun Jaitley Stadium here on Wednesday. India are coming into this match after sealing a six-wicket win against Australia. Afghanistan lost against Bangladesh by six wickets in their previous game. Hashmatullah praised his team’s bowling attack and said that they are looking forward to restricting India.
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
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