Afghanistan players during a practice session ahead of their maiden cricket test match against India. PTI Photo/Shailendra Bhojak India is all set to host Afghanistan for one-off Test at Bengaluru. It is a historic moment for Afghanistan as they would now become the 12th nation to play Test cricket. As ‘The Historic First’ is all set to begin, an epic battle is likely on cards with a showdown between the Afghan spinners and Indian batsmen. Rashid Khan, Mujeeb-Ur Rahman will lead the Afghan bowling unit. Though they will be playing their first international Test match, they could still have a meaningful impact on the result. Mujeeb and Rashid have played in the IPL and know the Indian conditions well. And their recent performance against Bangladesh must have boosted their confidence.
On the other hand, Indian batsmen have played well against spinners. To note, they have won last six Test series at home. The only time they struggled was against Australia in 2017. And a lot depends on how the Indian openers perform. The team will be captained by Ajinkya Rahane in absence of regular skipper Virat Kohli. Here we see the dream XI for India and Afghanistan in ‘The Historic Test’:
Dream XI: Mohammed Shahzad, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Karun Nair, Dinesh Karthik, Ashgar Stanikzai, Rashid Khan, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Mujeeb-Ur Rahman, Kuldeep Yadav.