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1st ODI: India Will Play Around No.3 Slot In Virat Kohlis Absence, Says Morkel

Indian Premier League: Indias fast bowling coach Morne Morkel has indicated that the team will experiment with the number three batting position in Virat Kohlis absence during the threematch ODI series against Afghanistan, starting at the HPCA Stadium on Saturday. Kohli was ruled out of the three ODIs against Afghanistan due to a hamstring injury picked up while hitting a match-winning 75 not out in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 final against the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad. In his absence, Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, and Yashasvi Jaiswal are in contention to bat at number three. I think thats something that in this series well play around with, (whether) its Ishan (Kishan) or KL (Rahul) or Yashasvi (Jaiswal). We have got a couple of oneday games coming up, and well give guys an opportunity in different slots to give ourselves a better idea of how we can structure teams and have different options, Morkel said in the pre-match press conference. Rahul has largely featured as a middle-order batter in the past five years, but in Indias training session on Friday, Kishan was on keeping duties while Rahul was tasked with taking outfield catches, thus raising the prospect of the Karnataka lad being promoted up the order for Saturdays clash. Morkel also spoke about the new pacers Prince Yadav and Gurnoor Brar, who are in line to get their international debuts in the series, with the next two games to be played in Lucknow and Chennai on June 17 and 20, respectively. First impressions, it is almost like theyve been part of the squad for five years. I saw no nervousness on their face. The way theyve gone about training, the energy theyve trained with, was good to see, he said. Morkel signed off by saying that Rohit Sharma was all fine after being spotted training with a different thigh pad, initially thought as protection for his hamstring, which he injured during IPL 2026. First impressions, it is almost like theyve been part of the squad for five years. I saw no nervousness on their face. The way theyve gone about training, the energy theyve trained with, was good to see, he said. Also Read: Live Cricket Score Rohit is moving well and training well. So excited to see him go. Always nice to have his experience back as well. Just the calmness that he brings to the dressing room is always a positive to have. He's training well, he's moving well. So I know that he's also excited to go. Article Source: IANS

12 Jun 2026 9:28 pm