India captain Shubman Gill won the toss and elected to bat first against Afghanistan in the one-off Test at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur on Saturday.
The biggest talking point at the toss was the Test debut of Rajasthan left-arm spinner Manav Suthar. The 23-year-old received his maiden Test cap after impressing selectors with a series of strong performances in domestic cricket and for India A.
Suthar's inclusion comes as India continue to build depth in their spin department, with senior all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja unavailable for the fixture. The young spinner has been one of the standout performers in the Ranji Trophy over the last few seasons and now gets an opportunity to showcase his talent on the international stage.
India fielded a balanced side featuring a mix of experienced campaigners and emerging talents, while Afghanistan entered the contest looking to challenge one of the world's strongest Test teams with their spin-heavy attack.
All eyes will be on debutant Suthar as India aim to make a strong start after choosing to bat first in Mullanpur. The left-arm spinner's journey from Rajasthan's domestic circuit to the Indian Test team represents another success story in the country's rich cricketing pipeline.
Playing 11
Afghanistan: 1 Sediqullah Atal, 2 Rahmanullah Gurbaz, 3 Abdul Malik , 4 Rahmat Shah, 5 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 6 Afsar Zazai (wk), 7 Azmatullah Omarzai, 8 Sharafuddin Ashraf, 9 Nangeyalia Kharote, 10 Ziaur Rahman, 11 Mohammad Saleem
India: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 KL Rahul, 3 B Sai Sudharsan, 4 Shubman Gill (capt), 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Dhruv Jurel, 7 Washington Sundar, 8 Manav Suthar, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Siraj, 11 Prasidh Krishna
