Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (from right), Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan(Image: AI)

IND vs AFG 2026 1st T20: Indian skipper Shreyas Iyer will look to continue the team’s winning run in T20 format of the game when they take on ‘hosts’ Afghanistan in the first game of the three-match series at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on SundayIyer will have some big decisions to make when he gets ready to finalise the playing 11 for the first game against the Afghans.

Chennai Super Kings wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson has returned to the squad after missing the three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe in July this yearBut his return to the Playing 11 could be a tricky one as his former Rajasthan Royals teammate Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is slowly but surely starting to secure a permanent berth in the side.

The 15-year-old Team India opener was named the ‘Player of the Series’ in Zimbabwe with a couple of fifties to his nameSamson managed scores of 1 and 27 in the five-match T20I series against England that India lost 4-0Before than in Ireland he managed to score only 5 and 0 in the two matches.

But the former RR captain was the ‘Player of the Series’ for India in the victorious T20 World Cup 2026 campaign earlier this yearOverall in 2026 so far, Samson has scored 400 runs in T20I cricket in 14 matches at an average of 30.76 with a strike-rate of 180.99 with 3 fifties.

The 31-year-old has scored 1432 runs in his T20I career for India in 66 matches at an average of 27.01 with 3 hundreds and 6 fifties at a strike-rate of 155.99.

Abhishek Sharma vs Sanju Samson for opener’s slot

The pressure will be on former world No1 T20I batter Abhishek Sharma to retain his opener’s slot alongside SooryavanshiAbhishek had a forgettable series in Zimbabwe with a total of 11 runs in 3 matches as compared with Sooryavanshi.

He has struggled badly in the 2026 season so far with only 514 runs in 23 matches including six ducks and a strike-rate of 185.55If Abhishek fails to fire in the first T20I against Afghanistan it could once again open the doors for Samson to replace him.

Captain Shreyas Iyer and his deputy Tilak Varma are in fine form currently in the middle-order while Ishan Kishan is set to be retained as the first-choice wicketkeeper ahead of Samson after scoring record 350 runs in the Duleep Trophy 2026 final against South Zone.

Washington Sundar ahead of Nitish Kumar Reddy

Keeping in mind the conditions at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, skipper Iyer could prefer to play off-spinner Washington Sundar ahead of medium-pacer Nitish Kumar ReddySundar has only been given fitness clearance from the Centre of Excellence (CoE) recently after being out with a hamstring injury for the last couple of months.

It will also be an opportunity for India to test the fitness of their talismanic pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who could play his first T20I match under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer while Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel will make up the remaining bowling attack.

Switching into game mode!

#TeamIndia gets to work ahead of #AFGvIND pic.twitter.com/U0Eke1HyJO

— BCCI (@BCCI) September 11, 2026

India Predicted 11 vs Afghanistan for 1st T20

Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (WK), Tilak Varma (VC), Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh