Star India batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be one of the players Afghanistan will have to keep a close eye on when they take on India in the first T20I of the three-match series on Sunday. The 15-year-old batter has already made a strong impression in the IPL, and Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran said that his team has prepared for the challenge he poses to opponents.

“He is an amazing talent. He performed really well in the IPL, and he has been performing across different levels of competitions. We talked about him, and we have that knowledge from the guys who played against him in the IPL,” Zadran said at the pre-match press conference on Saturday. “We have watched his videos. We will try to keep it simple for ourselves and will look to execute our plans,” he added.

However, Sooryavanshi came into the series after a productive Duleep Trophy campaign with East Zone. He scored 192 runs in five innings across three matches, including an important 92 in the semifinal against Central Zone as well. The Duleep Trophy campaign also allowed Sooryavanshi to showcase his game in red-ball cricket as well.

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Afghanistan, however, will look to their experience of playing in Indian conditions as they start the series against India. Zadran also believes that familiarity with the conditions, built through years of playing in India, will help them for sure.

“We know the conditions really well. We just need to execute the plan according to the situation,” he said. “It’s a big responsibility for me. As a player and captain, I’m trying to enjoy it, take responsibility and make the right decisions in pressure situations,” Zadran said.

“We just try to give 100 per cent and think about the process. Hopefully, we’re going to have a good series,” he concluded.