Who is Prince Yadav? Meet the Delhi pacer making his India ODI debut against Afghanistan

A young fast bowler earned his maiden India cap as the hosts made multiple changes for the second ODI against Afghanistan in Lucknow, with the series finely balanced and both teams looking to fix the gaps from game one.

Hashmatullah Shahidi had little hesitation choosing to bowl first: "Wicket looks fresh. I think it'll be spinning in the first innings. In the last game, we played really well, we missed the partnerships," he said, hoping for a stronger batting effort this time.

Skipper Shubman Gill confirmed three changes to the playing XI: "We would have bowled first as well. It's all about being in difficult situations. Prince makes his debut. We've got Kuldeep and Jaiswal in," he said at the toss.

Prince Yadav became India's third debutant of this series, following Harsh Dubey and Gurnoor Brar, who were handed their first ODI caps in the series opener. Kuldeep Yadav and Yashasvi Jaiswal also returned to strengthen the XI.

Prince Yadav first hit the spotlight after being bought by the Lucknow Super Giants for ₹30 lakh ahead of IPL 2025. He played six games in his debut season before truly arriving on the big stage one year later.

The right-arm quick claimed 16 wickets in 14 matches during IPL 2026, impressing selectors with his ability to strike at crucial stages of the innings — a skill that fast-tracked his journey to international cricket.

Across his domestic career, Prince has played two First-Class matches, 14 List-A games and 35 T20s — picking up 1, 29 and 38 wickets respectively. The numbers tell the story of a bowler built for white-ball cricket.

India enter the second ODI on confidence, having won the rain-shortened opener by seven wickets after bowling Afghanistan out for 194. A win in Lucknow would seal the series 2-0, with debutant Prince Yadav now part of that mission.