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India commenced their Super 8 journey against Afghanistan in Barbados with players donning black armbands to honor the late David Johnson, a former Indian fast bowler who recently passed away. Johnson, who represented India in two Tests in 1996, tragically died following a fall from his fourth-floor balcony in Bengaluru. Local authorities are investigating the circumstances to ascertain whether it was a case of suicide.
“Team India will wear black armbands today in memory of former India fast bowler David Johnson, who passed away on Thursday,” the BCCI informed shortly before the start of play here at the Kensington Oval.
Johnson’s Test career saw him play one match each against Australia and South Africa, where he claimed a total of three wickets. Additionally, he secured 125 wickets in 39 First-Class matches and dismissed 41 batsmen in 33 List-A games for Karnataka between the seasons spanning from 1992-93 to 2001-02.
India, batting first against Afghanistan, saw captain Rohit Sharma winning the toss and choosing to bat in this pivotal match. The Indian team made a single alteration to their lineup, with left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav replacing Mohammed Siraj. Meanwhile, Afghanistan also made one change, bringing in Hazratullah Zazai in place of Karim Janat.
“We are going to bat first. Looks alright at this moment, looks a good track. No grass on the pitch, I guess it will get slower. It’s better than New York. We have to adapt to the conditions quickly.
“We have been here for a couple of days, we have played a lot of cricket. It’s about understanding what we need to do in conditions like these. It’s an early start. Usually start in the evening elsewhere. We enjoy playing here. We have made one change, Kuldeep comes in for Siraj,” said Rohit Sharma at toss.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib, Najibullah Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi