The 15-year-old opener, who was Player of the Series in India’s previous T20I assignment against Zimbabwe, missed out as the team brought Sanju Samson back into the opening combination. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was left out of India’s playing XI for the first T20I against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday.
3, while captain Shreyas Iyer confirmed that Jasprit Bumrah and Nitish Kumar Reddy also returned to the XI. India won the toss and opted to bowl first, with Samson opening alongside Abhishek Sharma. Ishan Kishan retained his place at No.
The youngster scored 151 runs across three matches in the Zimbabwe series, including two half-centuries, at a remarkable strike rate of 196.10. 3. His last T20I appearance came in the 2026 T20 World Cup final, where he was named Player of the Match.
Jasprit Bumrah returned to the T20I side after missing recent matches due to injury. Sooryavanshi’s exclusion is one of the biggest talking points from the series opener, particularly after his impressive performances against Zimbabwe. He was subsequently named Player of the Series. However, with Samson back in the side, India opted for the experienced wicketkeeper-batter alongside Abhishek at the top of the order. The decision means Sooryavanshi will have to wait for his first T20I appearance on home soil. Samson’s return had created a selection dilemma for the Indian team, with the management having to choose between him, Sooryavanshi and Abhishek for the opening slots. For the first T20I, the team has opted to pair Samson with Abhishek, while Kishan continues at No. Samson was not part of India’s squad for the Zimbabwe series, which opened the door for Sooryavanshi to make an impact. India also welcomed back two important players for the series opener.
