India's predicted playing XI for the 3rd T20I vs Afghanistan
Having already secured the series by virtue of six-wicket wins in the first two T20Is, Team India will face off against Afghanistan in the final encounter on Wednesday, January 17 in Bengaluru.
The third T20I will be India's final contest in the format ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be held after the Indian Premier League (IPL). It will therefore be an excellent opportunity for the Men in Blue to try out a few new players and combinations.
Team India's squad for the Afghanistan T20Is: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar.
Here is India's predicted playing XI for the third T20I against Afghanistan.
Openers: Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal
Shubman Gill opened the batting in the series opener, and India might be tempted to give him another go at the top of the order. The 24-year-old hasn't had a good run of games in the format, and the more he plays, the better he'll get.
However, the Men in Blue will not want to disturb the existing combination of Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal. While the Indian skipper is in desperate need of a run, his left-handed opening partner was at his aggressive best in the last game.
Middle Order: Virat Kohli, Shivam Dube, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Axar Patel
Virat Kohli entered the fray for the second T20I and made his intentions very clear. The superstar batter will welcome a return to the Chinnaswamy Stadium, where he has played plenty of memorable knocks. His strike rate, as always, will be in focus.
Shivam Dube has reeled off successive fifties, but India are unlikely to rest the fast-bowling all-rounder, who has been their third pacer thus far. The tall southpaw will want to cap off the series with another promising display.
Jitesh Sharma bagged a duck and dropped a catch in the last game. While he has played a couple of valuable hands in the format thus far, the hosts might want to test out Sanju Samson, who scored a century in his last international game.
Ideally, Jitesh and Samson should play in tandem, but that's hard to do without sacrificing a batter or an additional bowling option. And both of those methods don't seem feasible right now.
Giving Axar Patel and Rinku Singh some balls to face will be high on India's agenda. Batting first will help in that regard.
Lower Order: Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan
![Arshdeep Singh [right] celebrates a wicket: India v Australia - T20I Series: Game 5](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/01/a84ca-17054757612516-1920.jpg)
Washington Sundar hasn't been too impressive with the ball so far, and that might encourage India to play their wrist-spinners in tandem for the first time in the series. Kuldeep Yadav could replace Sundar and partner Ravi Bishnoi, who has been slightly expensive.
Mukesh Kumar bowled just two overs in the last game, and Avesh Khan did decently in his last T20I assignment. The experienced fast bowler might thus be replaced by his younger compatriot, who is arguably a better option for the shortest format.