TimesofIndia.com in Dharamsala: India's first ODI assignment since the T20 World Cup also marks the start of a longer journey towards South Africa, where conditions next year are likely to place a premium on pace, bounce, and seamers capable of hitting the deck hard.
With Jasprit Bumrah unavailable and Harshit Rana still recovering, the Afghanistan series could offer India an early look at some of the fast-bowling options competing to join them on that flight. Bowling coach Morne Morkel indicated that expanding India's pace reserves ahead of the World Cup was very much part of the thinking behind the opportunities likely to come the way of youngsters such as Prince Yadav and Gurnoor Brar.
Morkel on the vision
"That's definitely part of our thinking and our vision - to give ourselves options for that World Cup in South Africa," Morkel said on the eve of the first ODI in Dharamsala.
"It's good for Indian cricket that we give guys opportunities under pressure against good opposition and see what they can do."
"Luckily we've got two guys now in Prince and Gurnoor in our squad. I'm pretty sure Gautam (Gambhir) will give those guys opportunities and see how they go in the Indian shirt."
"It's different playing international cricket with that Indian badge."
First impressions
Morkel was encouraged by what he has seen from the pair since they joined the squad. "My first impressions, it is sort of almost like I felt they'd been part of the squad for five years. I saw no nervousness in their faces, although I can imagine coming into this squad they would be pretty nervous."
"I think the way they've gone about training, the energy they trained with, was very nice and good to see."
"In terms of their skills, I can also see that they've done a lot of work on that. They were on the money, accurate."
Long-term goal
While the immediate focus is on Afghanistan, Morkel made it clear that the management's sights are fixed on a bigger target.
"For me, it is just taking the learnings from South Africa, taking the learnings from New Zealand and looking for improvement in our white-ball game, especially in our 50-over game," he said.
"That's the goal now - looking for small improvements and making sure when we come to the World Cup next year, we're peaking at the right time."
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About the Author: Pratyush Raj is a cricket journalist with TOI Sports, specializing in all things cricket, both on and off the field. He began his career with the Business Standard before following his passion as a sports reporter for the Times of India in Chandigarh. Pratyush has also contributed to the sports coverage of India Today Group and his last stint was with The Indian Express. His love for sports was nurtured during his upbringing in flood-prone Saharsa, a district in North Bihar, where Cricket Samrat was his constant companion.
