NEW DELHI: Harshit Rana’s return to international cricket will take some more time as the speedster has injured himself during the match simulation, which was part of the Return to Play (RTP) protocol, on Tuesday. It is understood that the injury does not look good at the moment and has put a major question mark over his participation in both the Afghanistan T20Is and the upcoming Asian Games.Harshit Rana sustained a hamstring injury in the third T20I against England at Trent Bridge earlier this year.Rana injured his knee during India’s warm-up match against South Africa in the lead-up to the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup and was subsequently ruled out of that tournament. He then underwent surgery and missed the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 as well while playing for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).After completing his rehabilitation, Rana was added to the India squad for the third ODI against Afghanistan in Chennai on June 20.As TOI.com reported earlier, Nitish Kumar Reddy has received the all-clear, and Washington Sundar too has ticked the right boxes. With regard to Jasprit Bumrah, clarity is expected before the team links up to commence its preparations.India will play Afghanistan in three T20Is on September 13, 15 and 17. Although the matches are being played in Delhi, Afghanistan are the official hosts of the bilateral series.The Indian team will depart for the Asian Games from Delhi on September 18. Before the start of the Asian Games, Team India will also play a solitary T20I against Japan on September 22 at the Sano International Cricket Ground in Tochigi Prefecture.
