Afghanistan Tour of India 2026: Full Schedule, Player Squads, Fixtures & More

India’s red-ball season will resume with a one-off Test against Afghanistan in the new Chandigarh starting June 6.

This match will be only the second Test match between the two countries. Afghanistan’s previous Test appearance in India was almost eight years ago, while their most recent tour in the format ended in a heavy defeat by an innings and 73 runs to Zimbabwe in Harare last year.

After the Test matches, both teams will focus on ODI cricket as part of their preparations for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in 2027.

Three-Match ODI Series Follows Test Clash

The limited-overs phase of the tour will feature three ODIs. The first match of the series will be played in Dharamsala on June 13, followed by the second match in Lucknow on June 17. The final ODI will be played in Chennai on June 20. Both teams are expected to use the series as an important stepping stone in their preparations for the World Cup.

India vs Afghanistan Full Schedule

Date	Match	Venue	Time (IST)
6-10 June	India vs Afghanistan One-off Test	MYS International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur	9:30 AM
13 June	India vs Afghanistan 1st ODI	HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala	1:30 PM
17 June	India vs Afghanistan 2nd ODI	Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow	1:30 PM
20 June	India vs Afghanistan 3rd ODI	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai	1:30 PM

India Opt for Strong Squad in Test Match

There was speculation that India could field a second-tier team for this standalone Test, especially since the match is not part of the current World Test Championship cycle.

Instead, the selectors have announced a strong squad led by Shubman Gill, with most of the senior players retained. However, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel have been rested as part of workload management plans and to help expand India’s bowling options in red-ball cricket.

Reports also suggest that several fringe bowlers have been called up to help during the Test preparations. The players involved in the net sessions include Oqib Nabi, Prince Yadav, Zeeshan Ansari, Saransh Jain, Gurjapaneet Singh and Shivang Kumar.

Afghanistan Make Multiple Changes

Afghanistan have made changes to their squad after their defeat to Zimbabwe in Harare.

Veteran batsman Rahmat Shah has returned after missing the previous Test due to injury. The selectors have also included Siddiqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Nangyal Kharotai, Qais Ahmed, Bilal Sami and Salim Safi.

Meanwhile, Ismat Aslam and Yamin Ahmadzai have been left out after a poor performance in the Zimbabwe Test.

India Continue ODI World Cup Build-Up

For the ODI series, India has mostly stuck with the core group that has been playing this format regularly.

At the same time, some emerging players have been given a chance. Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey are among the youngsters who have been given a place in the team.

Ishan Kishan has also returned to the ODI setup after an absence of more than two and a half years. Interestingly, his last ODI appearance was also against Afghanistan during the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.

Also Read: New Zealand Tour of England 2026: Full Schedule, Player Squads, Fixtures & More

Afghanistan Retain Core ODI Group

Afghanistan will enter the series with most of the players from the team that secured a clean sweep against Bangladesh in October.

However, there have been two changes in the fast bowling department. Mohammad Saleem and Bashir Ahmed have not been retained, with Zia ur Rehman Sharifi and Fareed Malik replacing them.

The visitors will be hoping that the continuity in the group will help them build on the momentum gained from their recent ODI success.

IND vs AFG 2026 one-off Test: Full squad lists

India

Shubman Gill (c), KL Rahul (vc), Rishabh Pant (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Prasidh Krishna, Harsh Dubey, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar.

Afghanistan

Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmat Shah, Azmatullah Omarzai, Sediqullah Atal, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Afsar Zazai (wk), Abdul Malik, Qais Ahmad, Sharafudin Ashraf, Nangyal Kharotai, Bilal Sami, Zia Sharifi, Saleem Safi, Rahmanullah Zadran.

IND vs AFG 2026 ODIs: Full squad lists

India

Shubman Gill (c), Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Shreyas Iyer (vc), KL Rahul (wk), Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Kishan (wk), Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Prasidh Krishna, Harsh Dubey, Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar.

Afghanistan

Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rahmat Shah, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, AM Ghazanfar, Fareed Malik, Nangyal Kharotai, Bilal Sami, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi.

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