India will kick off the title defense in the 2026 Asian Games in the quarter-final in a repeat of the 2023 final against Afghanistan on Monday (September
28) at the Karachi Stadium in Nissin. The Shreyas Iyer-led side is expected to make one change from the side that played Japan in a historic T20I on September 22, with Jasprit Bumrah set to return to the line-up after being rested for the rain-affected clash. Bumrah is set to take Yash Thakur's place in the side and share the new ball with Arshdeep Singh as India's two-time T20 World Cup-winning pace duo are reunited. With Nitish Kumar Reddy pulled out of the squad to play the ODI series, Washington Sundar took his place in the playing XI against Japan, and the off-spinning all-rounder is expected to retain his spot in the squad. That should also be the only change in India's line-up from the first two T20Is they played against Afghanistan in a three-match series earlier this month in New Delhi Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is set to warm the bench again after India made it clear that Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson will continue to remain the first-choice opening pair. The 15-year-old won the Player of the Series (POTM) against Zimbabwe but, since then, has not featured in any of the four T20Is the Men in Blue have played Ravi Bishnoi will be the lone specialist spinner, while Axar Patel and Sundar's presence means they will be the team's two all-rounders as well as spinners. Also Read: Asian Games 2026 QF Confirmed: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh's Opponents, Match Time Revealed India Likely XI vs Afghanistan in Asian Games QF: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan (WK), Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah Also Read: Ruturaj In, No Jaiswal; Nabi To Debut: India's Likely XI In 1st ODI VS WI India Squad For Asian Games 2026:Shreyas Iyer (c), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Vipraj Nigam, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
