Former India skipper Kris Srikkanth slammed Afghanistan for their performance in the first T20I against India, saying Rashid Khan has past his prime. The Men in Blue secured a seven-wicket win in the series opener in Delhi on September 13. Afghanistan struggled across departments, with the players finding it hard to challenge the Shreyas Iyer-led team.

Afghanistan posted 156 for 8 in 20 overs before India completed the chase in 14th over.

Rashid, who is closing in on 200 wickets in T20Is, conceded 34 runs from his 3.4 overs and went wicketless.

“This victory has killed an already dead snake. Afghanistan is not a good side. They come to India for losing matches. They like getting thrashed by India time and again. They are not competitive in all departments. Rashid Khan and Nabi have past their prime,” Srikkanth said.

Afghanistan have never won against India in a T20I.

“You can get away with a big issue against Afghanistan”: Kris Srikkanth on India’s fifth-bowler struggle

Kris Srikkanth mentioned that India an issue with their fifth bowling option despite the comprehensive win over Afghanistan on Sunday.

While the four bowlers were spot on, the fifth bowling combination of Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube and Abhishek Sharma conceded a lot of runs. The trio went for 59 runs without picking up a scalp from four overs.

“Jasprit Bumrah was brilliant in the match. India are playing without the option of the sixth bowler. It is being noticed against a team like Afghanistan. India smashed them and that’s a good thing. India should have done the same to Ireland but lost the series.

That’s why the full team has been selected for the Afghanistan series,” said Srikkanth. India have taken a 1-0 lead, and the team will have a chance to complete a series win in the second game on September 15.