Rashid Khan picks himself in current combined India-Afghanistan XI
India spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, today picked a current combined India-Afghanistan XI. Interacting through a Live Instagram session, both spinners chose their players with a lot of care and picked a talented playing XI that can be formidable adversaries for any opposition.
Starting with the openers, the ace leg-spinners went with the tried and tested duo of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan. Current Indian captain Virat Kohli was picked at his usual number three spot whereas Afghanistan all-rounder Rahmat Shah was handed the crucial number four spot. India's later addition to the wicket-keeping options, KL Rahul, sealed the number five spot, followed by former India captain MS Dhoni.
Interestingly, MS Dhoni was included despite not playingcompetitive cricket since India's infamous loss to New Zealand in the semi-final of the Cricket World Cup 2019 held in England and Wales.
Dhoni was slated to feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) this year. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic wreaking havoc in almost all the cricket playing nations, Dhoni's return was postponed indefinitely.
Rashid Khan names himself as leg-spinning allrounder
Following Dhoni in the line-up is Hardik Pandya while Rashid Khan turns up himself as an all-rounder after the Mumbai Indians player. Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Mujeeb Ur Rahman complete a fearsome bowling line-up.
The line-up was constituted of eight Indian and three Afghanistan cricketers. Khan went in with five frontline batsman, one wicket-keeper, two all-rounders and three bowlers. Surprisingly, players like Mohammad Nabi, who has performed incredibly well at the highest level, weren't included in the playing XI. Chahal on the other hand didin't name himself in the line-up and paved the way for Rashid Khan as the proper leg-spin all-rounder in the team.
Current combined India-Afghanistan XI
Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Rahmat Shah, KL Rahul, MS Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Rashid Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
