Afghanistan announce schedule for historic series against India

Afghanistan are set to host India in their own backyard for the very first time. Afghanistan have announced the schedule for a three-match T20I series against India. The bilateral series will get underway on September 13, with the second and third T20Is scheduled to be contested on September 15 and 17, respectively. All three games will be held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.

The chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), Mirwais Ashraf, called the announcement "a significant milestone" and thanked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for its support and cooperation in making it happen.

“This series holds great significance for Afghanistan cricket and represents another important step in the development of our longstanding relationship with the BCCI. Hosting India for a bilateral series in India is a significant milestone for us, and we highly value the cooperation and support of the BCCI in making this event possible," said Ashraf in a press release issued by the ACB.

“We have hosted our home fixtures in both India and the UAE in recent years, and given the importance and scale of this series, we believe India provides an excellent setting for the event. We are confident that the series will create valuable opportunities across commercial, technical, and cricketing areas, while adding a new dimension to our bilateral engagement. We look forward to a successful series and to further strengthening our partnership with the BCCI.”  

The incumbent BCCI president Mithun Manhas expressed solidarity with the Afghanistan Cricket Board and called the series a significant step in "strengthening the relationship between the two cricketing nations".

“The BCCI remains committed to supporting the growth of cricket in Afghanistan and providing its players with opportunities to compete at the highest level. Bilateral cricket is an important part of this, as it allows teams to play regularly against quality opposition and gain valuable experience. We welcome the Afghanistan Cricket Board to India for this series and look forward to working closely with them to make it a successful one. We believe there is scope to do more together and will continue to support Afghanistan cricket while strengthening the relationship between the two cricketing nations,” said Manhas.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia also expressed pleasure over the announcement and believed the series would offer top-notch cricket for the fans to relish.

“The BCCI is pleased to support the Afghanistan Cricket Board in hosting this T20I series in India. The India-Afghanistan cricketing rivalry has produced some thrilling encounters over the years, with both teams boasting quality cricketers. Afghanistan’s players are also quite popular among fans in India, which is a reflection of the strong bond that has developed between the two cricketing nations. India hosting Afghanistan for their historic first Test in 2018 was another significant milestone in this journey, and since then, we have continued to see regular bilateral engagements between the two teams.

“We recently hosted Afghanistan for a Test and ODI series in June, and this T20I series will mean the two teams have now competed against each other across all three formats. We look forward to welcoming the Afghanistan team to Delhi and are confident that this will be an exciting and memorable series.”

Notably, Afghanistan had toured India in June for a one-off Test and three ODIs. India comprehensively won all the games.

Afghanistan vs India 2026 T20I series schedule