The third and last match of the India vs Afghanistan ODI series kicked off on Saturday afternoon at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, with the visiting captain, Hashmatullah Shahidi, winning the toss and electing to bat first.
Shahidi cited the heat in Chennai and the dry and hard nature of the pitch as the reason for opting to bat first.
Heading into the IND vs AFG 3rd ODI, India had an unassailable lead of 2-0 following victories in Dharamsala and Lucknow.
While India would be aiming to clean sweep the series, Afghanistan are hoping to gain some positives from this tour, having lost the one-off Test match in Mullanpur prior to the ODI series.
Meanwhile, India ringed in three changes to their lineup that won the second ODI. One of those changes was excluding senior keeper-batsman KL Rahul!
IND vs AFG: What changes did India make today in the 3rd ODI?
For the 3rd ODI against Afghanistan, India made three changes to their playing XI. All-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Harsh Dubey and pacer Prasidh Krishna returned to the side, replacing Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, and Kuldeep Yadav.
IND vs AFG: Why Is KL Rahul Not Playing Today In 3rd ODI?
Rahul has been rested from the 3rd ODI against Afghanistan in Chennai. With Nitish Kumar Reddy getting fit, India decided to retain both Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ishan Kishan in the side, and the team management opted to rest Rahul, Arshdeep, and Kuldeep.
This provided an opportunity for all three of Reddy, Dubey, and Krishna to further stake their claim to be picked for the ODI squad to face England next month.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan announced four changes to their team: Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Fareed Ahmad, and Ziaur Rahman displaced Nangeyalia Kharote, Mohammad Saleem, Sediqullah Atal, and Bilal Sami in the XI.
IND vs AFG Playing XIs:
Afghanistan: Ibrahim Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Darwish Rasooli, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Azmatullah Omarzai, Fareed Ahmad Malik
India: Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (wk), Prasidh Krishna, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shreyas Iyer, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey, Prince Yadav.
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