Jasprit Bumrah recalled by India for Afghanistan T20I series

Jasprit Bumrah has been recalled to India’s 15-man squad for the T20I series against Afghanistan after recovering from a knee injury that has kept him out since July.

Bumrah missed the third ODI against England and the Test series that followed in Sri Lanka. His return strengthens an India squad that will again be captained by Shreyas Iyer.

Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana and Washington Sundar have also recovered from their respective knocks and have been selected. Their inclusion provides further depth to the group ahead of the Afghanistan series.

Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh and Axar Patel return after being rested for India’s most recent T20I assignment, a series against Zimbabwe in July.

The trio were absent from that tour but have now been restored to the squad, while several players who travelled to Zimbabwe have been omitted. Rinku Singh, Prabhsimran Singh, Harsh Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Ashok Sharma, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav and Yash Thakur are all left out.

Hardik Pandya remains unavailable after suffering a leg strain during training at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. He has not recovered in time to be considered for the Afghanistan fixtures and remains on the treatment table.

India’s squad includes a blend of established international players and younger options. Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi are among the batting choices, alongside Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma.

Shivam Dube and Nitish Kumar Reddy provide all-round options, with Axar Patel and Washington Sundar also included. The bowling group features Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana.

Bumrah’s return is the most notable development in the selection announcement after his period on the sidelines. He will be part of a group led by Iyer, who retains the captaincy for another T20I series.

India’s 15-man T20I squad for the Afghanistan series is:

Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana.

Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana give India three pace-bowling options in the selected squad, while Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi add specialist spin. The selection also marks the return of three players who were rested against Zimbabwe and confirms that Pandya will miss the next assignment because of his leg injury.