IND vs AFG: Mohammed Siraj makes way for Kuldeep Yadav, fans surprised with India opting to bat first

India, poised to begin their ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 Super 8s campaign against Afghanistan at Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados, won the toss and surprised fans by opting to bat first. Rohit Sharma, speaking at the toss, explained their decision: "We are going to bat first. Looks alright at this moment, looks a good track. No grass on the pitch, I guess it will get slower."

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While this decision came as a surprise, fans were already anticipating India's strategy for the Barbados conditions, which included bringing in an extra spinner. Therefore, it was no shock when Mohammed Siraj made way for Kuldeep Yadav in the squad. Fans on X (formerly known as Twitter) shared their excitement about the toss and their eagerness to see Kuldeep Yadav in action.

Kuldeep Yadav replaces Siraj in the Playing 11. pic.twitter.com/TzOOAPxxEt

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) June 20, 2024

sir kuldeep yadav comes in finally 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/T1UzOs2Hca

— shau (@musklaudu) June 20, 2024

Kuldeep Yadav is back in the playing XI. pic.twitter.com/xNygaLD2Q6

— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) June 20, 2024

"Kuldeep Yadav replaces Siraj for the first super 8 game"
Picture unrelated pic.twitter.com/Wkt9lS4r4V

— akshat. (@StanVirat) June 20, 2024

On the other hand, Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, also at the toss, expressed his preference: "We would have liked to bat first. It's more about how you play the game in T20s." They too made one change, with Zazai replacing Karim Janat in the lineup.

For the record, India has never lost to Afghanistan in their eight meetings in T20Is, winning seven with one game ending in no result.

Placed in the first group, considering their Twenty20 International rankings, India's rivals such as Australia (ranked No. 2) are positioned below them, whereas Bangladesh (ranked No. 9) and Afghanistan (ranked No. 10) are much further down the table.

Teams:

India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah

Afghanistan (Playing XI): Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib, Najibullah Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi.

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