AFG vs IND 2026: Why is Arshdeep Singh not playing in the 3rd T20I?

As the toss took centre stage at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi, for the third T20I between Afghanistan and India, the news of Arshdeep Singh being benched for the series finale on Thursday, September 17, came as a shocker. The pacer has been in excellent form, won the Player of the Match award in the first encounter and is also the all-time highest wicket-taker in the shortest format of the game.

AFG vs IND, 3rd T20I: Toss Update

This time round, the toss went in favour of the hosts, and they had no hesitation to bowl first, keeping in mind that they lost the series while chasing in the first couple of matches. Ibrahim Zadran, the Afghan skipper, made it clear that they have marked their learnings from the losses and are looking to play this match as an individual game, having lost the series already.

Indian skipper Shreyas Iyer, meanwhile, clarified that they wanted to bat first anyway and did not mind losing the toss.

AFG vs IND, 3rd T20I: What is the reason behind Arshdeep Singh's absence?

As the Men in Blue have already clinched the series, they opted to make an experiment with their playing combination without tinkering a lot. Keeping in mind Arshdeep's continued workload of leading India's pace attack alongside Jasprit Bumrah and managing his workload, the Indian team opted to try out the services of Yash Thakur, the pacer who made his debut in the recent series against Zimbabwe.

Thakur represents the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), also captained by Iyer. 

AFG vs IND, 3rd T20I: What did the captains say?

Ibrahim Zadran, Afghanistan captain, said:

"We are going to bowl first. We wanted to bowl first in the last two games as well, but unfortunately, we lost the toss. If you look at the wicket, it's quite supportive for the bowlers, and I'm sure we will execute our plans well in the bowling department. We will try to put pressure on them and not allow them to put a big score on the board.

"[What’s the team’s mindset after the series defeat?] We have lost the series, but we thought about the areas we need to work on and what we haven't done well in the last two games. We will try to play better cricket and win a game against them to finish well. And yes, India are one of the best teams. They have, I would say, all the departments covered in T20 cricket, but we always try to make things easy for ourselves and not complicate them. We just try to give 100% and play better cricket against them. [Any changes?] Yes, we have got two changes. Gulbadin Naib and Noor Ahmad are not playing. Abdullah Ahmadzai and Noor ul Rahman are in."

Shreyas Iyer, India captain, said:

"[You lost the toss. What would you have chosen? We would have definitely batted first as well. I interacted with him. I knew what he would do. (Is this a good test against a side that has won the series )? Yes, absolutely, and it also gives us a fun challenge to bat here to the best of our abilities. [What have you told the team ahead of this game?] See, there is no room for complacency. It's important that we stick to the moment and see to it that we are basically backing our instincts and not complicating things.

"Obviously, we are batting first. That doesn't mean that we are going to go completely berserk. We need to adapt. We need to see to it that we are getting acclimatised to the situation as well. So yeah, good challenge, looking forward to it. [Any changes to your side tonight?] One change – Yash Thakur comes in place of Arshdeep."

AFG vs IND, 3rd T20I: Playing 11s

Afghanistan

Ibrahim Zadran (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Noor ul Rahman, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abdullah Ahmadzai

India

Sanju Samson (WK), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Yash Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah