Team India to emulate special feat after 28 years

Originally posted on Crictoday | By Ashwin C | Last updated Sep 8, 2026 12:58 AM ET

On 13th September 2026, the Indian cricket season will kick off in full swing with the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. This will be followed by the Asian Games 2026 and the West Indies tour of India. With two tournaments set to take place at the same time, the fans could witness two Indian cricket teams playing on the same day for the first time in 28 years.

On 3rd October 2026, Team India will be playing the West Indies in the third and final ODI at the Mullanpur stadium in New Chandigarh. Shreyas Iyer's side could play the finals of the Asian Games 2026 on the same day.

A similar situation happened in 1998, when the Indian side played in the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur and an ODI series against Pakistan in Canada. Team India was led by Ajay Jadeja and had the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble and a young Harbhajan Singh in the side.

Mohammad Azharuddin-led team played in Canada but lost the series by a 4-1 margin. The subcontinent team was placed in Group B of the 1998 Commonwealth Games alongside Canada, Australia, and Antigua.

Their first game against Antigua was called off due to rain, and both teams were given a point each. India then beat Canada by 112 runs. Australia thumped the Men in Blue by 146 runs in the final league game.

Australia batted first and scored 255, with Steve Waugh amassing an unbeaten 100 off 102 balls. India were all out for just 109, with skipper Jadeja accumulating 27 runs while Brad Young took four wickets.

What will be India’s ODI team composition?

The BCCI is sending a full-fledged squad to the Asian Games 2026. Ishan Kishan, Iyer, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Jasprit Bumrah are in the team.

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Shubman Gill will lead the batting unit in the West Indies ODI series. The selectors could recall Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal. It will be interesting to see the bowling combination, as most of the senior members are heading to Japan.

Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami and Prasidh Krishna could lead the pace attack against the visiting Windies side. Kuldeep Yadav is likely to get a chance in the spin department. Ravindra Jadeja, Manav Suthar, and Harsh Dubey are some of the front-runners to play against the visitors.