Why is Rashid Khan not playing IND vs AFG one-off test?
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Rashid Khan recently played in IPL 2026 for Gujarat Titans.
India and Afghanistan are locking horns in the one-off test at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh. Both teams are scheduled to play in one test and three ODIs.
This is the second test between India and Afghanistan. They played a test match long back in 2018, which India won by an innings and 262 runs.
Indian captain Shubman Gill won the toss and opted to bat first in the encounter. Spinner Manav Suthar has made his test debut for India. On the other hand, spinner Rashid Khan is missing from Afghanistan’s playing XI.
Why is Rashid Khan not playing in IND vs AFG test?
Notably, Rashid is not part of Afghanistan’s test squad. He has been picked for the ODI series. Moreover, he has taken a break from playing test cricket.
He underwent a back surgery in 2023. He rushed his way back to the field, a decision he regretted later. Doctors have advised him to stay away from test matches as of now as it will require him to bowl a lot of overs.
The leg spinner was part of the Indian Premier League 2026 recently. He played for Gujarat Titans, who ended as runners-up. He gave a fabulous performance in the season, clinching 21 wickets in 17 games at an economy of 9.07. He finished as the fourth-highest wicket-taker in the tournament. Meanwhile, Nangeyalia Kharote and Sarafuddin Ashraf are two spinners in Afghanistan in the clash.
Speaking at the toss, Afghanistan captain Hasmatullah Shahidi said, “To be honest, we wanted to bat as well because the wicket looks good. But anyhow, toss is not in our hands. We have three seamers and two spinning combinations, we have one debutant – Nangeyalia Kharote.”
Why is Rashid Khan not part of IND vs AFG one-off test match?
Rashid is not part of Afghanistan’s test squad.
Who won the toss in IND vs AFG one-off test?
India won the toss and chose to bat first.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.