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The Men in Blue will host Ibrahim Zadran-led Afghanistan for a three-match T20I series, starting January 11th. But ahead of the opening match in Mohali, Head Coach Rahul Dravid addressed the media where he confirmed several changes in the side. While he confirmed Virat Kohli will miss the first game due to “personal reasons”, he also confirmed the openers.
Also Read: Virat Kohli to miss first T20I against Afghanistan
Moreover, after reports surrounding Shreyas Iyer being dropped due on disciplinary grounds surfaced, coach Rahul Dravid cleared the air on the same. On being asked if Iyer missed due to his poor shot selection or disciplinary grounds, Dravid said he purely missed based on the fact that it was difficult to accommodate other batters.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Dravid quoted, “There was absolutely no disciplinary reasons for his non inclusion. It’s just that he missed out. The are a lot of batters in the team and I think Shreyas Iyer missed out. He did not play the T20Is in South Africa as well. It is unfortunate because he is a fine player but there are a lot of batters and it is not easy to fit everyone in the squad and the playing XI. So, no disciplinary reasons at all. "
Moreover, the former Indian cricketer also spoke of Ishan Kishan’s absence. He said that the wicketkeeper-batter had taken a break from cricket and was unavailable for selection for the Afghanistan T20Is.
