India and Afghanistan will face each other in a one-off Test match from June 6 to 10 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh. The match will begin at 9:30 AM IST and will be the first ever Test hosted at the venue.
The pitch is expected to assist fast bowlers during the opening sessions before gradually offering help to spinners later in the game.
India will be without Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja, who have been rested. According to reports, Devdutt Padikkal is likely to bat at No. 3, while Sai Sudharsan could miss out on the spot. KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal are expected to open the innings.
India could also hand Test debuts to Manav Suthar and Gurnoor Brar. The team management is likely to field Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Manav Suthar as the three all-rounders in the playing XI.
The spin department could feature Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar and Manav Suthar, while Gurnoor Brar is expected to strengthen the pace attack.
Afghanistan, meanwhile, will rely on experienced names such as Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi as they look to challenge a young Indian side.
India and Afghanistan have faced each other only once in Test cricket. Their previous match came in Bengaluru in 2018, where India secured a massive innings and 262 run victory inside two days.
India Squad: Shubman Gill (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul (vc), Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey and Dhruv Jurel (wk).
