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Which adverbial phrase of time is more grammatically correct: 'Today afternoon' or 'Today in the afternoon'?

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Neither are clauses, but "today in the afternoon" is grammatical (adverbial phrase of time), while "today afternoon" is not. I would also suggest "this afternoon" as a more succinct and idiomatic alternative to "today in the afternoon".

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I suspect, from other discussions here, that "today afternoon" may be grammatical, and perhaps even idiomatic, in Indian English. It is certainly not in UK. – Colin Fine Apr 19 '11 at 11:47
@Colin: Interesting! Thanks for letting me know! – Jimi Oke Apr 19 '11 at 12:20
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To clarify: I have not seen "today afternoon", but certainly "today morning" has come up, as being common in Indian English – Colin Fine Apr 19 '11 at 13:44
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This afternoon is definitely the way to go. You can say Tuesday afternoon or yesterday afternoon, but not today afternoon. – Jason Orendorff Apr 19 '11 at 14:02
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Having worked with many Indians, 'today afternoon' is perfectly correct to them. In addition preponing a meeting (moving it forward) is also normal. – Julian Sep 16 '11 at 10:43
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