India swept the Friendship Cup 3-0.
Three T20Is. One venue. One batter who turned the whole series into his personal highlight reel.
From September 13 to 17, 2026, India and Afghanistan met in Delhi for a three-match India vs Afghanistan T20 series, officially branded the Friendship Cup. All three games were played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, even though Afghanistan carried the tag of “host” for scheduling purposes.
India won every match. Abhishek Sharma scored 229 runs at a strike rate of 269.41 and hit the third-fastest century in men’s T20I history along the way. Nitish Kumar Reddy quietly finished as the leading wicket-taker with 6 scalps.
This piece walks through every match, every key number, and where this series sits in the broader India National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan Cricket Team Timeline.
India National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan Cricket Team timeline
Afghanistan has never beaten India in a T20I. Not once.
India vs Afghanistan head-to-head before the Friendship Cup
Before this series, the two sides had met 9 times in T20Is. India won 8. One game ended with no result.
The most memorable of those meetings came in January 2024, in Bengaluru. Rohit Sharma made 121 off 69 balls after India slipped to 22 for 4, and Rinku Singh backed him up with an unbeaten 69 off 39. Afghanistan matched India blow for blow, with Gulbadin Naib smashing 55 not out off 23 to tie the scores at 212. It took two Super Overs to separate the sides. India won the second one by 10 runs.
That game still shapes how people talk about this rivalry. It’s the one time Afghanistan came within a single Super Over of a first-ever win.
India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026 timeline
| Match | Date | Venue | India score | Afghanistan score | Result |
| 1st T20I | Sep 13, 2026 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi | 157/3 (13.4 ov) | 156/8 (20 ov) | India won by 7 wickets |
| 2nd T20I | Sep 15, 2026 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi | 163/3 (14.5 ov) | 159/8 (20 ov) | India won by 7 wickets |
| 3rd T20I | Sep 17, 2026 | Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi | 221/7 (20 ov) | 94 (14.1 ov) | India won by 127 runs |
India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026 schedule
All three matches were played at the same ground, on a compressed four-day window:
- 1st T20I: September 13, 2026, Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi. India won by 7 wickets.
- 2nd T20I: September 15, 2026, Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi. India won by 7 wickets.
- 3rd T20I: September 17, 2026, Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi. India won by 127 runs.
Shreyas Iyer led India. Ibrahim Zadran captained Afghanistan for the first time in T20Is.
India vs Afghanistan 1st T20I 2026
1st T20I match summary
India won the toss and chose to field first. That decision worked out fine.
Afghanistan lost their way early. They slid from 38 for 1 to 43 for 5, with Ibrahim Zadran run out in the collapse. Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel, and Varun Chakaravarthy kept the screws tight throughout the middle overs.
Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi pulled Afghanistan out of the wreckage. Their sixth-wicket stand added 83 runs and got the total to a defendable-looking 156 for 8. Omarzai finished unbeaten on 64 off 44 balls.
It wasn’t defendable. Not against this India batting lineup.
Abhishek Sharma tore into the chase, and India were 82 for 1 inside the powerplay. He fell for 82 off 32 balls, and Ishan Kishan followed him back in the next over. It didn’t matter. Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma calmly finished the job, and an overthrow off Rashid Khan sealed a 7-wicket win with 38 balls to spare.
India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – 1st T20I
Afghanistan innings: 156/8 (20 overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | 64* | 44 |
| Mohammad Nabi | 33 | – |
India bowling
| Bowler | Overs | Wickets | Runs |
| Arshdeep Singh | 4 | 3 | 19 |
India innings: 157/3 (13.4 overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls |
| Abhishek Sharma | 82 | 32 |
Afghanistan bowling
| Bowler | Overs | Wickets | Runs |
| Mohammad Nabi | 3 | 2 | 28 |
Result: India won by 7 wickets. Player of the match: Abhishek Sharma.
India vs Afghanistan 2nd T20I 2026
2nd T20I match summary
Same toss result. Same outcome, basically.
India put Afghanistan in again, and Ibrahim Zadran top-scored with 37 off 33 as Afghanistan built to 159 for 8. Nitish Kumar Reddy was the standout bowler, taking 3 for 24 in his three overs. Mohammad Nabi reached his 2,500th T20I run during the innings, a small personal milestone inside a bruising team loss.
On a small ground and a good batting surface, 159 was never enough. Sanju Samson played the innings of the series so far, blasting 57 off 21 balls, his biggest T20I score since the World Cup. Abhishek Sharma chipped in with 39 off 19, and Ishan Kishan finished the chase unbeaten on 38 as India cruised home in 14.5 overs.
India sealed the series 2-0, with one match still to play.
India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – 2nd T20I
Afghanistan innings: 159/8 (20 overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls |
| Ibrahim Zadran | 37 | 33 |
India bowling
| Bowler | Overs | Wickets | Runs |
| Nitish Kumar Reddy | 3 | 3 | 24 |
India innings: 163/3 (14.5 overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls |
| Sanju Samson | 57 | 21 |
| Abhishek Sharma | 39 | 19 |
| Ishan Kishan | 38* | – |
Afghanistan bowling
| Bowler | Overs | Wickets | Runs |
| Rashid Khan | 3.5 | 3 | 36 |
Result: India won by 7 wickets (31 balls remaining). Player of the match: Nitish Kumar Reddy.
India vs Afghanistan 3rd T20I 2026
3rd T20I match summary
This is the one people will remember.
India batted first and put up 221 for 7. Sanju Samson made 50, but the innings belonged to one man. Abhishek Sharma reached his century off just 30 balls, the third-fastest hundred in men’s T20I history and the quickest ever by a batter from a Full Member nation. He finished on 108 off 34 balls.
Afghanistan never recovered from that psychological blow. Chasing 222, they folded to 94 all out in 14.1 overs. Ibrahim Zadran top-scored with 25. Nitish Kumar Reddy took 3 for 25, backed up by Ravi Bishnoi in the middle overs, and the innings simply came apart.
India won by 127 runs and completed a 3-0 sweep of the Friendship Cup.
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India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – 3rd T20I
India innings: 221/7 (20 overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls |
| Abhishek Sharma | 108 | 34 |
| Sanju Samson | 50 | – |
Afghanistan bowling
| Bowler | Overs | Wickets | Runs |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | – | 2 | 27 |
Afghanistan innings: 94 all out (14.1 overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls |
| Ibrahim Zadran | 25 | – |
India bowling
| Bowler | Overs | Wickets | Runs |
| Nitish Kumar Reddy | – | 3 | 25 |
Result: India won by 127 runs.
India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026 series result
India won the series 3-0. Afghanistan never led a single chase and never got close in the one match they batted first.
| Match | Winner | Margin | Player of the match |
| 1st T20I | India | 7 wickets | Abhishek Sharma |
| 2nd T20I | India | 7 wickets (31 balls remaining) | Nitish Kumar Reddy |
| 3rd T20I | India | 127 runs | Abhishek Sharma |
India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026 top performers
Leading run scorers
| Player | Team | Runs | Matches | Highest score |
| Abhishek Sharma | India | 229 | 3 | 108 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | Afghanistan | 92 | 3 | 64* |
Leading wicket-takers
| Player | Team | Wickets | Matches | Best bowling |
| Nitish Kumar Reddy | India | 6 | 3 | 3/24 |
| Rashid Khan | Afghanistan | 4 | 3 | 3/36 |
Best batting performances
Abhishek Sharma’s 108 off 34 balls in the 3rd T20I stands well above everything else in the series. His 82 off 32 in the series opener wasn’t far behind. Sanju Samson’s 57 off 21 in the 2nd T20I gets a mention too, for tempo alone.
Best bowling performances
Arshdeep Singh’s 3 for 19 in the opener set the tone early. Nitish Kumar Reddy backed that up twice, with 3 for 24 in Delhi’s second T20I and 3 for 25 in the decider.
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India vs Afghanistan T20I records from the 2026 series
A few numbers worth pulling out:
- Highest team score: India, 221/7 (3rd T20I)
- Lowest team score: Afghanistan, 94 all out (3rd T20I)
- Highest individual score: Abhishek Sharma, 108 off 34 (3rd T20I)
- Best bowling figures: Arshdeep Singh, 3/19 (1st T20I)
- Fastest century: Abhishek Sharma, 30 balls, the third-fastest hundred in men’s T20I history and the fastest by any batter from a Full Member nation
- Leading run-scorer: Abhishek Sharma, 229 runs at a strike rate of 269.41
- Leading wicket-taker: Nitish Kumar Reddy, 6 wickets
India National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan Cricket Team timeline: key moments
Zoom out, and this series fits a very clear pattern.
India beat Afghanistan by 101 runs at the 2022 Asia Cup. They beat them again at the 2023 World Cup. In January 2024, India won the bilateral series 3-0, but not before Afghanistan pushed them to two Super Overs in Bengaluru, a match that’s still the closest this rivalry has come to a shock result.
Then came September 2026. The Friendship Cup added a new chapter, and not a close one. Three matches, three Indian wins, and a 30-ball century that will headline this fixture’s record books for a long time.
Across the full India National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan Cricket Team Timeline, Afghanistan still hasn’t won a single T20I against India. The gap, if anything, widened this September.
India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – complete series
| Match | Scorecard | Result |
| 1st T20I | India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – 1st T20I | India won by 7 wickets |
| 2nd T20I | India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – 2nd T20I | India won by 7 wickets |
| 3rd T20I | India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard – 3rd T20I | India won by 127 runs |
India vs Afghanistan T20I head-to-head record
| Detail | Figure |
| Matches played | 12 |
| India wins | 11 |
| Afghanistan wins | 0 |
| No result | 1 |
| Highest team score (H2H) | 221/7, India, 2026 |
| Lowest team score (H2H) | 94, Afghanistan, 2026 |
Stats current through the end of the Friendship Cup, September 17, 2026.
FAQs about the India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026
Who won the India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026?
India won 3-0.
How many matches were played in the India vs Afghanistan Friendship Cup 2026?
Three T20Is, all at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, between September 13 and 17, 2026.
Where can I find the India vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard?
Each match’s scorecard is broken down above, with a consolidated summary in the “complete series” table.
What is the India National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan Cricket Team Timeline?
It’s the full run of meetings between the two sides across formats, from their early T20I encounters through the 2024 Super Over thriller in Bengaluru to this 2026 sweep. Afghanistan has yet to win a T20I in that timeline.
Who was the highest run-scorer in the India vs Afghanistan T20 series?
Abhishek Sharma, with 229 runs across three matches, including a 30-ball century.
Who was the leading wicket-taker in the series?
Nitish Kumar Reddy, with 6 wickets in three games.
Conclusion
India didn’t just win the Friendship Cup. They made it look routine, then handed Abhishek Sharma the ball to blow it wide open in the finale.
229 runs. A 30-ball hundred. 6 wickets for Nitish Kumar Reddy at the other end of the ledger. Afghanistan will take plenty from this tour, but not a single win.
For the individual breakdowns, check the match scorecards above. And for the bigger picture, the full India National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan Cricket Team Timeline tells you exactly how one-sided this fixture has been so far.