Yash Thakur replaces Arshdeep Singh in India XI for third T20I against Afghanistan

At the toss of the third T20I between India and Afghanistan, Shreyas Iyer confirmed Yash Thakur would replace Arshdeep Singh in the playing XI for the match.

India had already sealed the T20I series against Afghanistan after commanding victories in the opening two games; the first match was played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi where India chased down 156 in under 14 overs, and the second match saw India chase 159 in under 15 overs.

In the opening game Abhishek Sharma scored 82(32) and was named Man of the Match after India restricted Afghanistan to 156 and then completed the chase; in the second fixture Nitish Kumar Reddy won Man of the Match for taking 3 wickets as Afghanistan posted 159.

Arshdeep Singh had been a consistent performer in the first two matches, taking 3 wickets in the first match, giving away only 19 runs, and 2 wickets in the second match, giving away 35 runs, but he was not selected in the XI for the third T20I.

The report said Arshdeep is most probably being rested for the third match; with the series already won, the team wanted to try other faces and manage Arshdeep Singh's workload, which could explain Yash Thakur being given the opportunity.

Yash Thakur has played two T20Is so far for the national side and has taken 4 wickets at an average of 18.75, with an economy rate of 9.38.

India have never been defeated by Afghanistan in T20Is, and India won the T20I series against Afghanistan; the third match provided a chance to test Yash Thakur while resting Arshdeep Singh.