India-Afghanistan series: KL Rahul replaces Rishabh Pant as Test vice-captain
What's the story
In a major development, KL Rahul has replaced Rishabh Pant as India's vice-captain in Test cricket. The move comes as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the squads for the upcoming Test and ODI series against Afghanistan at home. While Shubman Gill continues to lead in the two formats, Hardik Pandya's availability for ODIs is subject to fitness.
Twitter Post
Here are the two squads
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— BCCI (@BCCI) May 19, 2026
Presenting #TeamIndia's squads for the @IDFCFIRSTBank Test match and the 3️⃣-match ODI series against Afghanistan in June 🙌#INDvAFG pic.twitter.com/hFiABALLld
Takeaways
A look at takeaways
Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja have been rested for both the Test and ODI series. Manav Suthar, Harsh Dubey, and Gurnoor Brar have received their maiden Test call-ups for the one-off game. Apart from Brar and Dubey, Prince Yadav has been rewarded with an ODI call-up. While Prasidh Krishna returns to the Test setup, Devdutt Padikkal is expected to bat in the middle order.
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Other notable inclusions and omissions
Ishan Kishan, who owns an ODI double-century, returns to the format. Dhruv Jurel, Pant, Harshit Rana, and Siraj have been left out of the ODI squad. Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh are also part of the roster.
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India vs Afghanistan: Series schedule
New Chandigarh's Mullanpur will host the one-off Test from June 6. The three ODIs will be played in Dharamsala (June 14), Lucknow (June 17), and Chennai (June 20).