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The India National Cricket Team will be up against the Afghanistan National Cricket Team for a three-match T20I series. The first match is scheduled to take place on September 13 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi. Ahead of the match, the Men in Blue captain Shreyas Iyer shared his insights on the playing combination of the side.
This is the first time Afghanistan is hosting India in a bilateral series. Due to Afghanistan’s diplomatic tensions in the country, they are not able to host the match in their country. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has allowed them to host the matches in New Delhi, so all three matches will be played at the same venue.
"Having them in the team is a luxury first of all": Shreyas Iyer breaks silence on India's opening combination
During the pre-match press conference, Shreyas Iyer was present to answer the media. He was asked about the most important thing that who will be opening for the Men in Blue side in the first game, as the race is between Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson. He did not reveal the combination as he answered the question.
“All three of them (Abhishek, Sanju and Sooryavanshi), having them in the team is a luxury first of all, and they are flawless in their own departments. Well, it is going to be a tight call because they have been performing consistently. And see, whoever gets the opportunity, it's definitely for the team's benefit,” Iyer told reporters on Saturday.
“And the player sitting outside, it's important that I have an interaction with him, along with the coach and give them that confidence. That you know what, no matter what, you will get your opportunity when the day comes,” he added.
India's opening combination dillema continues
The opening combination for India is a big headache at the moment with three brilliant openers in the team, Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. Gautam Gambhir and his side have tried and tested all the opening combinations on days when it has worked, and some haven’t.
Now the big question remains for Shreyas Iyer and the management: will Vaibhav be dropped after winning the Player of the Series award against Zimbabwe in the last series when Sanju was rested or Sanju will be made to sit out or Abhishek who has struggled to get runs in recent times get dropped.
Shreyas Iyer provides massive update on Ishan Kishan's injury
Apart from providing an update on India’s opening combination, Shreyas Iyer also gave a positive update on batter Ishan Kishan, who left the net session after he had back pain while playing a bouncer from Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Navdeep Saini in the nets on Friday evening. Shreyas Iyer revealed that Kishan is fit and fine.
“I feel that he is comfortable at the moment. I interacted with him after the practice session. It was just a small niggle, and he has been playing continuous cricket. We all know the knock he played in the Duleep Trophy. So, definitely a bit fatigued. But today he got that rest, and I am sure that he will be fine for tomorrow,” said Iyer.
