India captain Shubman Gill and vice-captain Shreyas Iyer will have personal milestones in sight when India take on Afghanistan in the first ODI of the three-match series in Dharamsala. The series opener could prove to be a memorable occasion for both batters as they approach 3,000 ODI runs.

Gill is just 47 runs away from reaching the 3,000-run mark in ODI cricket. The opener has scored 2,953 runs in 61 matches at an impressive average of 55.71, including eight centuries and 17 half-centuries. Meanwhile, Iyer needs only 23 runs to achieve the same milestone, having accumulated 2,977 runs in 76 ODIs.

Former India batter Aakash Chopra predicted a playing XI featuring Rohit Sharma and Gill at the top, followed by Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar. Chopra also backed Prince Yadav to make his ODI debut alongside Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna and Arshdeep Singh.

The Afghanistan series carries added significance as India continue building towards the 2027 ODI World Cup. Young players such as Nitish Kumar Reddy and Prince Yadav could get valuable opportunities to establish themselves in the national setup while senior players look to regain form and consistency.