Cricket

India sweat over Ishan Kishan's fitness after injury scare in nets ahead of 1st IND vs AFG T20I match

September 12, 2026

India encountered an unexpected hurdle ahead of their upcoming T20 international opener against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, as Ishan Kishan sustained a back issue while practicing in Delhi on Friday, September 11. The wicketkeeper-batter had spent around three-quarters of an hour batting smoothly alongside skipper Shreyas Iyer before facing net bowler Navdeep Saini.

While attempting to evade a short delivery from the fast bowler, Kishan felt immediate distress and summoned the medical staff, ending his stint early. Fortunately, he managed to stroll unaided after medical evaluation, rested near teammates on an ice cooler, chatted with Saini, and exited unassisted, suggesting the injury might not keep him out of Sunday's contest on September 13.

The national side will monitor the Jharkhand cricketer closely, as he has amassed 812 runs across 23 T20Is in 2026—ranking second among all run-scorers globally this calendar year—and recently captained East Zone to victory in the Duleep Trophy before securing a spot on the Asian Games roster bound for Japan. Should the injury disrupt plans, alternative top-order candidates are already on hand; during the same drills, teenager Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Sanju Samson trained side-by-side in an adjacent net while team management prepares its starting lineup.