2nd T20I Live: Will Sooryavanshi make his home debut?
Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the 2nd T20I between Afghanistan and India at the Arun Jaitley stadium in New Delhi.
The weather is unlikely to disrupt Tuesday’s second T20I in Delhi. While the city could see a brief spell of rain during the afternoon, conditions are forecast to improve by evening.
With the match scheduled to begin at 7:30 pm at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the chances of rain during playing hours appear low, raising hopes of an uninterrupted contest.
Currently the temperature in the city is 30 degree celsius and it is expected to drop as the match progresses into the night.
India’s opening combination remains a talking point after Sanju Samson could only manage 10 in the series opener against Afghanistan. Abhishek Sharma, meanwhile, put an end to his nine-innings wait for a T20I fifty with a stunning 82. That could put the spotlight firmly on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ahead of Tuesday’s second T20I. The 15-year-old has been waiting on the sidelines, but another failure from Samson could make it increasingly difficult for India to overlook him.
Sooryavanshi’s treatment has already sparked debate, with former India players Mohammad Kaif and Kris Srikkanth questioning the management’s handling of the teenager. After being made to wait during the Ireland and England tours, Sooryavanshi finally got a run during the Zimbabwe series, where he played three straight matches. He has since been dropped back to the bench, with Samson returning.
BCCI are adopting a long-term plan for Sooryavanshi to make him follow the same success path as Sachin Tendulkar. It does seem like that path may not go through the Arun Jaitley stadium at the moment. Maybe Japan and Asian Games?
India: Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (capt), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh.
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran (capt), Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmed, Fazalhaq Farooqi.
It seemed like Varun Chakravarthy was back to his brilliant best during the first T20I. He bowled a disciplined spell, gave away just 19 runs and picked up one wicket. And just when it seemed like Varun had finally put his injury woes behind him, news emerged on Monday, September 14, that the spinner is out of the series and may miss the Asian Games also.
This is a big blow for India, who will now need to shuffle their side for the contest. Ravi Bishnoi seems to be the favourite to come in, provided India decides to bring in Washington Sundar for the extra-batting option.
India could hardly have asked for a better start to their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. Playing in familiar Delhi conditions on Sunday, the Men in Blue cruised to a seven-wicket win, chasing down 157 in just 13.4 overs.
The result was particularly encouraging for a full-strength Indian side playing together for the first time since the T20 World Cup, with the Asian Games now approaching. After restricting Afghanistan to 156, India’s chase was headlined by Abhishek Sharma, who smashed a stunning 82 off just 32 balls.
The only slight concern was the fifth-bowling option, with Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shivam Dube sharing the responsibility. Otherwise, India were comfortably in control.
Afghanistan will get another chance on Tuesday, with the second T20I being played at the same venue. They had hoped familiarity with the Arun Jaitley Stadium, their designated home ground for the series, would help them challenge India. Instead, the batting-friendly surface worked against their biggest weapon.
Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Noor Ahmed and Mujeeb Ur Rahman struggled to extract much from the pitch, while Abhishek took the attack apart, scoring 46 runs from 20 balls against spin.
Unless the conditions change, Afghanistan could face another difficult outing. Naveen-ul-Haq’s return offers some hope, but the pacer is still finding his feet after an injury layoff and has not played competitive cricket since December 2025.
