Mohammed Siraj is a part of IND vs AFG squad. PC- AFP
The fever of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) is over, and the hoglight shifts to international cricket. India will resume their calender with the one-off Test match against Afghanistan, scheduled to begin on June 6. However, the Men in Blue are already hit with a major storm releated to Mohammed Siraj.
In a developing update, the Gujarat Titans and Hyderabad seamer might miss the low-stalk Test match, which is not a part of the ongoing World Championship cycle (WTC 2025-27).
Jasprit Bumrah is already resting in the multi-format bilateral against Afghanistan, and Siraj's unavailibility will leave the fast bowling department pretty inexperienced.
Mohammed Siraj may miss IND vs AFG One-Off Test
According to the Times of India, the Indian team management will manage Mohammed Siraj's workload in the one-off Test match. Although the right-arm seamer has reached Chandigarh, he will be closely monitored closely by the medical team before taking a final call on the eve of the Test match.
"The Indian team management is likely to make a final call on Mohammed Siraj's workload within the next 48 hours ahead of the one-off Afghanistan Test," the TOI report stated.
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India call-up knocking on Auqib Nabi's doors
In Mohammed Siraj's absence, Auqib Nabi, who recently joined the squad as net bowler, may earn his maiden India call-up. Meanwhile, Punjab's Gurnoor Brar will make his India debut in all likeliness then.
"Discussions occurred about resting Siraj for the one-off Test but decision-makers did not want to field a completely inexperienced bowling attack. If selectors make a late call to rest Siraj, Gurnoor Brar is likely to debut, and Nabi will be added to the squad," the report added.
Apart from Siraj, Prasidh Krishna and Brar are the only two seamers present in the IND vs AFG Test squad.
Traditionally, India tend to play only two seamers in home Tests, but the team management might take a final discussions depending on the weather predictions for the five days. Thus, both Brar and Nabi could be seen making their debuts in Chandigarh, if Siraj misses out.
Is the IND vs AFG Test part of WTC?
The IND vs AFG Test match was added late into the calendar by the BCCI. Thus, the given match wasn't part of India's Future Tours Program (FTP).
It is a one-off Test match, which doesn't fall under ICC's current WTC guidelines. Also, Afghanistan and Ireland are not part of the nine Test nations featuring in the ongoing cycle.
Moreover, teams need to play at least two Test matches in a bilateral series for the series to be part of the WTC.
IND vs AFG Test Squad
Indian squad for one-off Test: Shubman Gill (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul (vc), Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey, Dhruv Jurel (wk).
Afghanistan squad for one-off Test: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Abdul Malik, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmanullah Zadran, Afsar Zazai (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Sharafudin Ashraf, Nangyal Kharotai, Qais Ahmad, Bilal Sami, Zia Sharifi, Saleem Safi.
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