By India can seal their T20I series against Afghanistan with a win in today’s second match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
India currently lead the three-match series 1-0, having won the opener by 7 wickets while chasing down 156 for 8 in 13.4 overs.
Abhishek Sharma’s half-century was the key performance behind India’s dominant chase in the first T20I.
All three matches of the series are being played at the same Delhi venue, with the decider set for September 17.
A win today would give India an unassailable 2-0 series lead with one match still remaining.
A series win for India would continue their strong recent record against Afghanistan in the shortest format of the game.
Afghanistan have shown steady improvement in T20 cricket in recent years, with several of their bowlers posing a genuine threat to top-order batters.
The Arun Jaitley Stadium, formerly known as Feroz Shah Kotla, has hosted numerous high-profile India matches across formats.
India’s T20I squad for the series includes several players who have also featured prominently in the ongoing Asian Games preparations.
A series victory in the second T20I would give India an unassailable 2-0 lead with one match still to play.
Afghanistan will be looking to bounce back after their heavy defeat in the series opener, needing a much-improved batting effort against India’s bowling attack.
The series comes as part of a busy international calendar for India across formats, with several other assignments scheduled in the coming months.
Delhi’s late-monsoon weather has occasionally affected outfield conditions at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in September, though there were no reports of disruption to the series opener.
India’s team management has used bilateral T20I series like this one to assess bench strength ahead of major multi-team tournaments later in the year.
Ticket sales for the Delhi T20Is have reportedly been strong, reflecting continued fan interest in India’s home fixtures across formats.
Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
