Days after getting Virat Kohli for a duck, Prince Yadav earned his first ODI call-up

Within days, the life of Prince Yadav, a young pedestrian from Najafgarh, Delhi, took a major turn. From seeking advice from India’s batting great Virat Kohli to dismissing him for a duck in domestic cricket. He has now earned India’s first call-up for the upcoming three-match ODI series against Afghanistan.

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The Lucknow Super Giants fast bowler has been in sensational form in white-ball cricket, picking up 16 wickets in 12 ongoing Indian Premier League matches at an impressive average of 24. His consistency has made him one of the standout debutants of the season.

Apart from the IPL, Yadav has also impressed in domestic cricket. During the 2025–26 Vijay Hazare Trophy, he finished in the top five wickets with 18 scalps at an average of 19.27, underscoring his growing reputation as a reliable wicket-taking option across formats.

Virat Kohli, recalling his interaction with Yadav during domestic cricket, he spoke about the youngster’s personality and their conversations on the field.

“So people don’t know, I went and played Vijay Hazare, I didn’t know Prince at all. Because he feels very intense on the field and he’s such a sweet guy and he’s so funny. Ishant was there too and Ishant knows him so I got very close to him and he really opened up to me,” Kohli said on the RCB podcast.

“I used to call him Vijay Hazare even during those matches when I was standing in the middle, covering, whatever he has to do, where to play,” he added.

Next generation pace options

Yadav’s selection comes along with youngster Gurnoor Brar and experienced pitchers Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna while Jasprit Bumrah rested after a tough IPL season with the ball. The decision reflects India’s approach to managing workload while giving opportunities to emerging artists.

India will play a one-off Test followed by a three-match ODI series against Afghanistan. The ODI series begins on June 14 in Dharamshala, with the remaining matches scheduled in Lucknow and Chennai.

COMPLETE SQUAD ODI

Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, S Iyer (VC), KL Rahul (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Hardik Pandya, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Prince Yadav, Har Gurnoor Brar.

– The end

Published on:

19 May 2026 17:28 IST