India and Afghanistan travel to Uttar Pradesh for the second One Day International (ODI), to be played at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, on Wednesday, June 17. The Men in Blue come into the game knowing that a win will help them secure the series with a game to spare.
Shubman Gill’s side secured a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Afghanistan in the first ODI in Dharamshala, chasing down 195 in the second innings in a rain-affected game.
IND vs AFG: Toss Update
Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi called the coin toss correct and opted to bowl first. The 31-year-old stated that the pitch looks fresh and could offer spin in the first innings, something which remains their strength. Indian captain Shubman Gill also wanted to bowl first in Lucknow, but will now hope to post a defendable total in the first innings.
IND vs AFG: India make three changes, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Prince Yadav come in
As far as team changes are concerned, India were forced to make three due to fitness and illness concerns. Kuldeep Yadav, who is widely regarded as the side’s main spinner, returns to the playing XI in place of Harsh Dubey. Other changes include Yashasvi Jaiswal and Prince Yadav coming in place of Nitish Kumar Reddy and Prasidh Krishna, with the latter making his international debut.
CSK vs LSG: What did the captains say?
Hashmatullah Shahidi, Afghanistan Captain
“We want to bowl first. The reason is the wicket looks fresh and I think it will be spinning in the first innings. There is a chance of that, so that’s why we want to bowl. In the last game we played really well, but we were missing in the partnerships. We just had one good partnership, but after that we threw away our wickets easily. So that’s the reason we didn’t finish on the winning side. So hopefully the boys learn from it and come back stronger in today’s game. (On the spirit in the Afghanistan camp) I think our boys have a lot of passion for cricket. And it’s the ability and the skills of the players that we are doing well and hopefully that we improve day by day. We have three changes. Nabi is sick, he’s not feeling well and Azmat got injured in the practice session. And also Zia Sharifi is not playing. So we have three guys – Bilal (Sami) … and … Darwish Rasooli is debuting today.”
Shubman Gill, India Captain
“Honestly, we would have bowled first as well, because of our combination. We were forced to play with only five bowlers in this match. So, just because of that, we would have bowled first as well. It’s all about just being in difficult situations and getting that experience. If you’re chasing, have the habit of chasing the big scores, and if you’re defending, how can we defend those low totals, and how clinical can we be with our bowling. We have got three changes. Prince makes his debut. Nitish was unavailable for selection in this match. He had some issues with his quad. So we have got Kuldeep and Jaiswal in.”
IND vs AFG: Playing XIs
India:
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Gurnoor Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav
Afghanistan:
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Darwish Rasooli, Rashid Khan, Nangeyalia Kharoti, AM Ghazanfar, Mohammad Saleem Safi, Bilal Sami
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