A very disappointing news has come out for Indian cricket fans. Team India’s veteran batsman Virat Kohli has been officially ruled out of the upcoming three-match ODI series against Afghanistan.
This news has created a stir in the cricket world, because everyone was desperate to see Kohli on the field. In his place, the young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal has been included in the 15-member Indian team.
Virat Kohli was injured while playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the recently concluded IPL 2026. He suffered this injury during the final match of this season of IPL, which proved to be very serious. However, when the Indian team was announced for the Afghanistan series last month, Kohli was selected in the team. The selectors were hopeful that he would recover in time, but unfortunately this did not happen and after the advice of doctors, it was decided to give him rest.
Yashasvi Jaiswal gets a chance in the ODI team in place of Virat.
Virat Kohli’s exit is a big blow for Team India. Kohli has already retired from Test and T20 International cricket, after which he now represents India only in the ODI format. In such a situation, his absence may definitely weaken the middle order of the team a bit. Kohli played his last international match in the three-match ODI series against New Zealand in January this year. His bat spoke volumes in that series. He scored a total of 240 runs in three matches at an unmatched average of 80.00 and an excellent strike rate of 105.26. It is clear from his recent performance that he was in excellent form, and his absence will definitely be missed by the team.
Big statement of selector Ajit Agarkar
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar clarified the situation regarding Virat Kohli’s injury and his return during a press conference on Saturday. Agarkar indicated that Kohli could be fit till the ODI series against England to be held after the Afghanistan series. Agarkar said, ‘The situation with Virat Kohli at present is that it has been less than a week since he got injured in the IPL final. We do not yet know the exact timeline of his recovery. But it looks like he may be fit for the upcoming one-day series against England. However, this is not a definitive or definitive answer, so don’t hold me to it. I have not yet received any clear report from the team physio regarding his injury and comeback.
Yashasvi Jaiswal got a golden opportunity
This is another great opportunity for 24-year-old Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was included in the team in place of Virat Kohli, to prove himself. Jaiswal has played only four ODI matches for India so far, in which he has scored a total of 171 runs at an excellent average of 57.00. Interestingly, Jaiswal’s ODI career has been largely linked to injuries to Kohli and other senior players. He also made his ODI debut against England last year in place of injured Virat Kohli. After this, his last ODI appearance came during the home series against South Africa, when he was included in the team in place of injured Shubman Gill. In the first two matches of that series, Jaiswal could not do anything special and scored 18 and 22 runs respectively. But in the third and decisive match, he showed his true strength and scored his first ODI century by playing a match-winning inning of 116 not out. Thanks to his century, India won that series 2-1.
India-Afghanistan adventure will start from June 13
This three-match ODI series between India and Afghanistan is expected to be very exciting. This series will start on June 13 with the first ODI match in the beautiful hill town Dharamshala. After this, both the teams will move to Lucknow for the second ODI match, which will be played on June 17. The third and final match of the series will be held on June 20 at Chepauk Stadium, Chennai. In the absence of Virat Kohli, young captain Shubman Gill will have a big responsibility to manage the team. Also, the presence of experienced players like Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya will provide balance to the team. Shreyas Iyer has been made the vice-captain of the team, while both KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan have got a place in the team as wicket-keeping options. Apart from this, many young faces like Nitish Kumar Reddy, Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey have been included in the team, who would like to leave their mark in this series.
India’s updated 15-man ODI squad for the Afghanistan series is as follows:
Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer (vice-captain), KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey.