India vs Afghanistan: Jaiswal joins Dube and Axar's party in Indore, highlights Men in Blue's plenty problem in T20Is

The spotlight was supposed to fall on the comeback pair Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the ongoing T20I series between India and Afghanistan, the two stalwarts representing their country in the shortest format for the first time in over a year. Instead, some of the relatively unfancied members of the side have become the toast of the nation after their standout performances in the ongoing series.

Rohit made his big return in Mohali, but ended up getting run out for a two-ball duck after miscommunication with Shubman Gill. Axar Patel and Shivam Dube would then lead with ball and bat respectively as the Men in Blue cruised to a six-wicket victory chasing 159 to win.

The second T20I against Afghanistan in Indore witnessed Kohli make his highly-anticipated return after missing out on the series opener due to personal reasons. The former India captain did impress during his 16-ball stay at the crease, during which he collected 29 runs at a frenetic pace that suggested he had changed his approach in the shortest format after all. Rohit, meanwhile, was once again dismissed for a duck, this time of his own fault rather than his batting partner’s.

Read | Rohit’s unique feat and other statistics from 2nd IND-AFG T20I

Once again it was those two, Axar with the ball and Dube with the bat, who starred to setup a series-clinching victory in front of a packed Holkar Stadium. India won by an identical six-wicket margin, but this victory was even more clinical as they had more than four overs to spare while chasing a higher target.

Axar would collect two wickets from his quota of four overs for a second game running, but would be even more miserly this time as he conceded just 17 runs compared to 23 in Mohali. It was a similar story for Dube, who scored three runs more than what he had managed in the first game to notch up his highest T20I score, and would remain unbeaten on both occasions.

Joining the party in Indore was young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had been benched in the opening match to accommodate the returning Rohit. The team management decided to alternate between their back-up opening combinations, giving Jaiswal an opportunity in the second T20I after Gill had collected a 12-ball 23 in the first game.

The Rajasthan Royals batter has been enjoying a near-uninterrupted run in Tests and T20Is since making his debut in the two formats on the tour of West Indies last year, such has been his impact at the international level. He had even toured Ireland as well as Hangzhou, China for the Asian Games with second-string teams, making the most of whatever opportunities came his way.

Rohit and Kohli’s return to the T20I side, however, has complicated things a bit for both Jaiswal and Gill as well as for other opening options such as Ruturaj Gaikwad, who now has been pushed further down the pecking order despite having impressed as an opener in recent outings. With just one more match left in the shortest format for the Indian team before the T20 World Cup later this year, Jaiswal needed to make the most of the opportunity if he was to stay ahead in the race to open alongside the ‘Hitman’ at the big event later this year.

Jaiswal didn’t just make the most of the opportunity on Sunday, he hit it out of the park — both literally and figuratively — with a knock of 68 that came off just 34 deliveries, his knock laden with five fours and six sixes. The first of those five boundaries came off the very first delivery when he steered a full, wide delivery from Fazalhaq Farooqi behind point to signal his intent from the outset of India’s chase.

Yashasvi Jaiswal leads the way with a classy fifty