India Return to Test Cricket After Eight Months, Face Afghanistan

India and Afghanistan are set to face each other once again on the cricket field as the two teams begin their one-off Test match on Saturday. The Indian cricket team will return to Test cricket after a gap of nearly eight months. The match will be played at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium in Mullanpur and is scheduled to begin at 9:30 am. The contest is expected to provide an important challenge for both sides, with Afghanistan's spin bowlers set to test the abilities of India's batting unit. India's batting order enters the match with a fresh look following the retirements of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara. Apart from KL Rahul, no player in the current batting line-up has featured in 50 Test matches. In their previous Test series, Team India suffered a 2-0 clean sweep defeat against South Africa. Indian batters also faced significant difficulties against spin bowling on the pitches of Kolkata and Guwahati during that series. India hold a perfect record against Afghanistan in Test cricket. However, the two sides have met only once in the format. Their previous encounter took place in Bengaluru in 2018, which was also Afghanistan's maiden Test match. India emerged victorious in that contest. India have played a total of 598 Test matches so far, winning 185 and losing 188. A total of 224 matches ended in draws, while one match finished in a tie. Afghanistan, meanwhile, have played 12 Test matches in their history. The team has recorded four victories, suffered seven defeats and drawn one match. With both teams eager to make a strong impression, the Mullanpur Test promises to be an important contest, particularly for India's developing batting line-up and Afghanistan's spin attack.