🏏India vs Afghanistan, 2nd ODI, AFG tour of India 2026, Lucknow🏏

After rainy Dharamsala, India and Afghanistan brace for Lucknow's heat

India won the first ODI against Afghanistan and are aiming to wrap up the series

With the 2027 ODI World Cup still about 16 months away, there is no immediate sense of urgency. But both India and Afghanistan have kicked off their preparations for the big event with this three-match series.

In the first ODI, in Dharamsala, India handed debuts to Harsh Dubey and Gurnoor Brar, and Afghanistan to Ziaur Rahman. The visitors also called up Mohammad Saleem to the ODI squad after his impressive performance in the New Chandigarh Test.

However, rain reduced the game to a 25-over contest, not allowing a proper look at how the newcomers would handle the rhythm of a full 50-over match. It also meant that some Afghanistan batters, not known for their big-hitting, had to adapt on the go, something they could not do as well as they would have liked.

Thankfully, there is no threat of rain in Lucknow on Wednesday. The conditions will mirror those in New Chandigarh - hot and dry - and will test the players' skills and fitness. India, having won the first ODI by seven wickets, will be looking to seal the series. But with Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah missing, Afghanistan also have a chance of scoring their first win over India in the format and level the series 1-1.

Team news: Does Kuldeep come in?

India's spin-bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule hinted that they were not looking to make too many changes to their batting line-up. In the bowling department, wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav could replace one of the seamers if required.

India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shubman Gill (capt), 3 Ishan Kishan (wk), 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul, 6 Washington Sundar, 7 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 8 Harsh Dubey, 9 Gurnoor Brar, 10 Kuldeep Yadav/Prasidh Krishna, 11 Arshdeep Singh

Darwish Rasooli, whose father died last week, is back with the side and available for this game. But Afghanistan are likely to remain unchanged.

Afghanistan (probable): 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Sediqullah Atal, 4 Rahmat Shah, 5 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 6 Azmatullah Omarzai, 7 Mohammad Nabi, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 AM Ghazanfar, 10 Mohammad Saleem, 11 Ziaur Rahman

Originally posted by: SoniRita

After rainy Dharamsala, India and Afghanistan brace for Lucknow's heat

India won the first ODI against Afghanistan and are aiming to wrap up the series

With the 2027 ODI World Cup still about 16 months away, there is no immediate sense of urgency. But both India and Afghanistan have kicked off their preparations for the big event with this three-match series.

In the first ODI, in Dharamsala, India handed debuts to Harsh Dubey and Gurnoor Brar, and Afghanistan to Ziaur Rahman. The visitors also called up Mohammad Saleem to the ODI squad after his impressive performance in the New Chandigarh Test.

However, rain reduced the game to a 25-over contest, not allowing a proper look at how the newcomers would handle the rhythm of a full 50-over match. It also meant that some Afghanistan batters, not known for their big-hitting, had to adapt on the go, something they could not do as well as they would have liked.

Thankfully, there is no threat of rain in Lucknow on Wednesday. The conditions will mirror those in New Chandigarh - hot and dry - and will test the players' skills and fitness. India, having won the first ODI by seven wickets, will be looking to seal the series. But with Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah missing, Afghanistan also have a chance of scoring their first win over India in the format and level the series 1-1.

Thank you for the tags Soni!!

In the spotlight: Gurnoor Brar and Rahmanullah Gurbaz

When Gurnoor Brar got his India call-up, the selection was more on potential than performance. In his very first game, he proved the selectors right. He hit the deck hard, and consistently crossed 145kph. While Afghanistan scored at 7.81 per over, Brar picked up 3 for 27 at 5.58. If he can continue in the same manner, he could be in contention for the ODI World Cup next year.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored Afghanistan's fastest ODI hundred in Dharamsala•Associated Press

Rahmanullah Gurbaz didn't have a great time in the one-off Test in New Chandigarh. But in the first ODI in Dharamsala, he showed how dangerous he can be in white-ball cricket. His 48-ball hundred, with eight fours and as many sixes, was easily the fastest for an Afghanistan batter. Afghanistan will hope for more of the same from their opener, and for better contributions from the rest of the batting unit.

Pitch and conditions

The last time the Ekana Cricket Stadium hosted an ODI was during the 2023 World Cup. It hosted five games during that tournament, a mix of high-scoring and low-scoring contests. There was no significant toss advantage either. Wednesday's match will be played on a mixed-soil pitch. The temperature in the afternoon is likely to be around 39°C, and could drop to 33°C at night.

Stats and trivia

• Afghanistan have faced India five times in ODI cricket, with their best result being a tie in Dubai at the 2018 Asia Cup.
• India have played only two ODIs at the Ekana Cricket Stadium, while Afghanistan have played four.
• Shreyas Iyer is 11 short of 3000 ODI runs, Gurbaz ten short of 2000, and Ishan Kishan 33 short of 1000.

Quotes

"We still have to have a look at the pitch and then decide what our combination is going to be. Definitely different conditions compared to Dharamsala - much more hotter - but still a decision has to be taken in terms of how we go ahead."

India's spin-bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule on whether Kuldeep Yadav could play in Lucknow

"In Dharamsala, everything changed so quickly. We went to the ground to play a 50-over game, but because of rain, the game became a 25-over one. I think our top order was not mentally ready for that, and we were in a rush to hit boundaries. But we are learning day by day, improving day by day."

Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi feels Afghanistan could have been better in the truncated match

Thank you Soni for the thread and for tagging.

Senior team + A team both playing Afg today.

Thanks for the tag Soni 💙