India vs Afghanistan: Sanju Samson returns to T20I squad, no place for KL Rahul yet

Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson found a place in the T20I squad for the upcoming 3-match series against Afghanistan, starting January 11. Samson returns to the T20I set-up for the first time since August 2023, while India have also picked Jitesh Sharma, who has impressed in the limited opportunities he has got so far. Samson and Jitesh are the two wicketkeepers named in the 16-man squad announced by the BCCI senior selection committee on Sunday, January 7.

The rub of green had not been going Sanju Samson's way as he missed major ICC events in the recent past. However, the Kerala star has an opportunity to make his chance count in what will be India's final T20I assignment before the T20 World Cup.

Ishan Kishan was a notable omission from the squad for the T20I series against Afghanistan. The Mumbai Indians wicketkeeper played against Australia at home after the ODI World Cup but was withdrawn from the Test squad for the recently concluded 2-match series in South Africa. Ishan reportedly requested the BCCI for a break due to mental



fatigue with the cricket board mentioning "personal reasons" in its official release.

Meanwhile, India have not considered KL Rahul for the T20I series against Afghanistan. The senior campaigner, much like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, has not played T20Is since India's semi-final exit in T20 World Cup in 2022.

While the selection committee recalled Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the same treatment has not been given to KL Rahul, who has been in sensational form in ODIs and Tests in the recent past.

Notably, KL Rahul expressed his intent to return to T20Is after the successful tour of South Africa, in which he hit a Test hundred and led the ODI team to a series victory.

"When they ask me to do any job, I just tell them 'keep me in the XI, wherever you want to play me, I will'. I want to play more and more matches. Unfortunately, because of injuries, I have missed a lot of matches, not just this injury, I have been injured quite a lot," KL Rahul told Star Sports after India's Cape Town Test win.