India Squad vs Afghanistan - (Source: AFP)
On Saturday, India will lock horns against Afghanistan for a one-off Test at the Mullanpur Stadium in New Chandigarh. Notably, it will only be the 2nd Time these two teams will square off against each other in Test cricket.
The last time India faced Afghanistan was in 2018. It was also a one-off Test, and it has been 8 years since India last played a Test against the Afghans. It has been a long time, and the entire squad is a fresh one. Therefore, this article will shed light on India’s 2018 squad vs Afghanistan and where the players are now.
India’s 2018 Test Squad vs Afghanistan
Ajinkya Rahane (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Karun Nair, Wriddhiman Saha, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Hardik Pandya, Ishant Sharma, Shardul Thakur
Notably, KL Rahul and Kuldeep Yadav are the only two players who were part of the squad back then and will feature for India against the Afghans on June 6. Rest, the entire squad is fresh.
What Is India’s 2018 Squad vs Afghanistan Doing Now?
1. Ajinkya Rahane - Ajinkya Rahane is an active Indian batter but has been out of the scheme of things since July 2023. The right-handed batter is not in any plans and was recently seen captaining KKR in IPL 2026. At present, Rahane is playing in the Mumbai T20 League.
2. Shikhar Dhawan - On August 24, 2024, Shikhar Dhawan announced his international retirement. At present, the former Indian opener is playing in Big Cricket League (BCL).
3. Murali Vijay - Murali Vijay announced his international retirement in January 2023. However, he was not part of India’s set-up since 2018. Recently, Murali Vijay was active with Star Sports, doing commentary for their Tamil section during IPL 2026.
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4. KL Rahul - As mentioned above, KL Rahul is one of the two players to have featured in both squads. The right-handed batter is currently practising with the team in New Chandigarh, gearing up for the upcoming Test match.
5. Cheteshwar Pujara - 24 August 2025, Cheteshwar Pujara announced his international retirement. Recently, he was seen in a commentary stint with Star Sports during IPL 2026.
6. Karun Nair - Karun Nair has had an interesting journey since 2018. The right-handed batter went out of the scheme of things. However, he had a brilliant domestic season in 2024-25 and made a return to the Indian team for the 2025 tour to England.
The Karnataka-based cricketer failed miserably and did not get picked up for any other series after that. At present, he was part of the Delhi Capitals in IPL 2026 and played a few matches, which didn’t go his way either.
7. Wriddhiman Saha - On February 1, 2025, Wriddhiman Saha announced his international retirement. At present, Saha has picked up a coaching role and is the head coach of Bengal’s Under-23 side.
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8. R Ashwin - R Ashwin announced his international retirement on December 18, 2024, after the third Test of the 2024–25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Brisbane. Recently, the former India spinner was seen doing commentary in the IPL. Also, Ashwin has his own YouTube channel and spends most of his time there discussing cricket.
9. Ravindra Jadeja - Ravindra Jadeja is still an active part of India’s Test set-up. However, he has been rested for the upcoming one-off Test. India head coach Gautam Gambhir confirmed that the Afghanistan Test will help them identify a fourth spinner, which will come in handy against Sri Lanka, India’s next Test series.
10. Kuldeep Yadav - Kuldeep Yadav is the other player besides KL Rahul to be part of India’s squad back then and now as well. The left-arm chinaman is busy sweating hard in the nets at the Mullanpur Stadium in New Chandigarh.
11. Umesh Yadav - Umesh Yadav is an active cricketer but out of the scheme of things since 2023. Yadav’s last Test for India came against Australia in 2023. At present, Yadav was part of the IPL 2026 commentary team and has now gone back to play Vidarbha Premier League, where he has 6 wickets in 3 innings.
12. Mohammed Shami - Mohammed Shami is an integral part of the Indian setback, but injuries have kept him away from international opportunities. There was a lot of chatter around his absence when the squad was picked up for the upcoming one-off Test.
Recently, Shami played for Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2026. He had a successful season. and picked up 12 wickets in 13 innings.
13. Hardik Pandya - When Hardik Pandya started his career, he was considered for all formats. However, a massive back injury forced him to focus only on white-ball cricket. Notably, Hardik has not played a single match since August 30, 2018.
At present, Pandya is at the CoE, recovering from his back injury and is expected to be back for the upcoming ODIs against Afghanistan.
14. Ishant Sharma - Ishant Sharma is another one of those Indian active cricketers for whom a retirement announcement is merely a formality. The right-handed bowler has not played a single Test for India since 2021.
Recently, Sharma was part of the Gujarat Titans’ set-up but was not presented a single opportunity by the IPL 2026 finalist.
15. Shardul Thakur - Shardul Thakur is also one of those active players not in the scheme of things. Shardul Thakur last played against England in 2025, but is now playing in the Mumbai T20 league.
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