India may rest top stars for Afghanistan Test, final call with management | Exclusive

New Delhi: The Indian cricket team faces a packed international calendar after the IPL 2026 concludes on May 31, and the management will monitor workloads before finalising squads for the subsequent assignments. With only a few days separating the IPL final and the one-off Test against Afghanistan (June 6-10), top players might be rested for the red ball contest and play the ODI series that follows instead.

TimesofIndia.com has learnt that the management will make the final decision, but the idea is under discussion, and selectors will monitor how far the regular Test players advance in the IPL. The discussions around it will remain fluid since no World Test Championship points are on offer and there is a strong possibility that star players - including captain Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah and other regulars in both ODIs and Tests — will sit out.

The situation could well change if, for example, the Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians are not in playoff contention. With all options on the table, a final call is expected when the selectors finalise the squad for the Test and three ODIs.

"There is not much gap between the IPL final and the Afghanistan Test, so the selectors and management will be wary of not burning out the players, as there are three ODIs, then the white-ball series in England.

"There are no WTC points in the Afghanistan Test, and the stakeholders need to carefully manage the workload because some of the players would be on the road for close to two months and have a lot of cricket in the remainder of the year.

"ODIs and WTC are priority right now, and you want your best players to be fit, fresh and available for the four Tests - two vs Sri Lanka and two vs New Zealand - and the many ODIs. Why even risk a Bumrah for this Test?" said a source tracking developments.

It is further understood that the selectors have been tracking fast bowlers and spinners in the domestic circuit; maiden call-ups could be on the cards for the fixture in Mullanpur starting June 6. Gurnoor Brar has impressed the men who matter, and so has left-arm spinner Manav Suthar.

Both have been part of the India A set-up and will be included in the scheme of things along with Harsh Dubey, Auqib Nabi and Devdutt Padikkal if the workload management opens up slots. Nitish Kumar Reddy's improvement in the bowling department will keep him in discussions.