Afghanistan will host India for a three-match T20I series in New Delhi in September, marking the first time the Afghanistan Cricket Board will stage a bilateral series against India on Indian soil.
The BCCI confirmed that the three matches will be played between September 13 and 17, with the Arun Jaitley Stadium hosting all three games. The series will come shortly before the Asian Games campaign and follows Afghanistan’s recent tour of India, where they played a one-off Test and three ODIs in June.
The arrangement reflects Afghanistan’s growing reliance on India as one of its secondary home venues. The Afghan team played its first-ever Test against India in Bengaluru in 2018 and has since regularly used India to host home fixtures.
“The BCCI is pleased to support the Afghanistan Cricket Board in hosting this T20I series in India,” BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said in a statement.
Saikia pointed to the growing rivalry between the two sides and the popularity of Afghanistan’s players among Indian fans, while describing India’s hosting of Afghanistan’s first Test in 2018 as an important milestone in the relationship between the two boards.
The decision also underlines the increasingly close cricketing ties between the two countries. Afghanistan have previously hosted home fixtures in both India and the UAE, with the choice of venue influenced by logistical and commercial considerations.
ACB chief Mirwais Ashraf said India offered an ideal setting given the importance of the upcoming series.
“We believe India provides an excellent setting for the event,” Ashraf said, adding that the series would create opportunities across commercial, technical and cricketing areas.
For India, the series will provide another opportunity to assess their T20I group before a busy international calendar, while Afghanistan will get the chance to play a high-profile bilateral series in familiar surroundings.
The three matches in Delhi will also add another chapter to a rivalry that has grown rapidly in recent years. Afghanistan have increasingly established themselves as a competitive side in white-ball cricket, while their players have developed a strong following among Indian fans through the IPL.
With all three matches scheduled at the same venue, the series will offer a concentrated contest between two sides whose cricketing relationship has continued to expand well beyond their meetings at ICC tournaments.
