India secured a dominant victory in their standalone Test match against Afghanistan, defeating the visitors by an innings and 300 runs after dismissing them twice on the third day at Mullanpur on Monday. Afghanistan, forced to follow on, were dismissed for just 112 runs in their second attempt, even worse than their first innings total of 152, while India had accumulated a massive 564/8 in their opening innings. Newcomer Manav Suthar emerged as India’s bowling hero, capturing 6/33 across 22 overs in Afghanistan’s first innings. Washington Sundar dominated Afghanistan’s second innings, securing four wickets. Spinners Help India Secure Historic Innings Win in Test.
TOSS
India won the toss and decided to bat first.
PLAYING XI
Afghanistan (Playing XI):
Sediqullah Atal, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Abdul Malik, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi(c), Afsar Zazai(w), Azmatullah Omarzai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Nangeyalia Kharote, Ziaur Rahman Sharifi, Mohammad Saleem Safi
India (Playing XI):
KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Rishabh Pant(w), Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Manav Suthar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
DAY-1
India’s opening partnership reached 41 runs before Mohammad Saleem Safi made his breakthrough, dismissing Jaiswal with a delivery down the leg side. Sai Sudharsan then partnered with Rahul, making the most of his opportunity at number three with an impressive 81 runs from 104 deliveries. Afghanistan tried the same leg-slip strategy that England had previously employed against him, but Sudharsan managed it effectively, scoring freely when bowlers strayed to his pads and driving confidently when given room.
A tense moment arose when Nangeyalia Kharote induced an edge from Sudharsan during his initial over facing spin, but Rahmanullah Gurbaz dropped the opportunity at slip. Kharote and Hashmatullah Shahidi generated some turn and bounce initially, but once the moisture disappeared and conditions stabilized, India’s batsmen seized command.
Following a cautious morning session that produced 96 runs, Rahul began using his feet skillfully against the spinners after the lunch break. Sudharsan also became more confident, reaching his fifty in 67 balls and punishing Kharote with three straight boundaries. He looked particularly comfortable against the fast bowlers, driving freely through the covers before eventually nicking Safi to slip, missing his first Test century by 19 runs.
Following Sudharsan’s 139-run partnership with Rahul for the second wicket, Gill joined Rahul smoothly as they added 67 more runs. The skipper appeared completely comfortable from the start, hitting four boundaries in his opening 24 balls and helping India control a middle session that produced 113 runs.
The evening session brought another 159 runs and belonged completely to India once more. Gill showed his aggressive intentions by lifting Kharote over long-off for six, while Rahul completed his 12th Test century and extended his successful streak as opener. Unfortunately, he departed right after reaching the landmark, driving ambitiously and giving a catch at cover.
Rishabh Pant, appearing in his 50th Test, then partnered Gill and prevented Afghanistan from gaining any momentum. After a careful beginning, Pant shifted gears with three sixes off Malik and rushed to a 70-ball half-century. Meanwhile, Gill continued building, reaching his 11th Test century in just 138 balls. Their unbroken fourth-wicket partnership was worth 121 at stumps, leaving India in complete control and perfectly positioned for a huge first-innings total on Day 2.
DAY-2
Continuing their first innings, the home team accumulated runs freely before declaring at a dominant 564. Captain Shubman Gill spearheaded the effort, building on his overnight century to finish with an excellent 126 from 177 balls, including 15 boundaries and one six.
The remaining middle and lower-order batsmen also made significant contributions. Rishabh Pant, resuming on fifty, continued to score 81 from 121 deliveries. Washington Sundar then formed a 54-run partnership with debutant Manav Suthar, who contributed a useful 28 runs. Washington picked up pace to reach an unbeaten 52, adding 30 more runs with Mohammed Siraj and 24 with Kuldeep Yadav before India’s declaration.
Despite the batting domination, Afghanistan’s Mohammad Saleem Safi produced a courageous bowling display, persevering through difficult circumstances to achieve impressive figures of 6 for 140. He claimed four of India’s five wickets that fell on Day 2 before the hosts declared.
Confronting a huge total, Afghanistan’s first innings began poorly against India’s disciplined bowling unit. Openers Abdul Malik and Sediqullah Atal were removed for 16 and 17 runs respectively, while Rahmanullah Gurbaz departed for 12 as Suthar and Prasidh Krishna created early problems. Captain Hashmatullah Shahidi tried to stabilize with a determined 20, but fell leg-before-wicket, putting the visitors in serious difficulty at 98/4.
Rahmat Shah offered Afghanistan’s main resistance, grinding his way to an unbeaten 43 at day’s end and becoming his country’s first batsman to reach 1000 Test runs. For India, both Prasidh and Suthar proved highly effective, keeping strict control over the scoring. Suthar claimed his third wicket in the day’s final moments. Afghanistan ended the second day at 113/5, facing a massive deficit of 451 runs.
DAY-3
Starting from their overnight position of 113/5, trailing by 451 runs, Afghanistan fell to 152 in their first innings. Rahmat Shah showed some fight to turn his careful innings into 60, but Indian bowlers Suthar and Prasidh Krishna had already taken wickets early on Day 3. When Rahmat departed—becoming Suthar’s fifth scalp—Afghanistan crumbled rapidly.
India enforced the follow-on, and Afghanistan actually started their second innings positively. The opening pair added 42 runs, with Abdul Malik anchoring the innings and Sediqullah Atal contributing most runs. Malik departed after a careful 8 from 40 balls, and Atal then partnered with Ramanullah Gurbaz for a 32-run second-wicket stand. Gurbaz adopted an attacking approach, scoring 24 runs at a run-a-ball pace, including three boundaries and one six.
After Kuldeep Yadav broke this partnership, Afghanistan quickly collapsed. Atal fell for 42, with Rahmat Shah being the only other batsman to reach double figures. Washington Sundar dismantled the middle order, taking 4 for 36, while Kuldeep claimed 3 for 30 as the visitors folded for just 112 in their second innings, suffering a comprehensive defeat.
Brief scores:
India 564/8 decl (Shubman Gill 126, KL Rahul 100; Mohammad Saleem Safi 6-140) beat Afghanistan 152 (Rahmat Shah 60; Manav Suthar 6-33) & 112 (Sediqullah Atal 42, Washington Sundar 4-36, Kuldeep Yadav 3-30) by an innings and 300 runs
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