Afghanistan named a 15-man squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia on Thursday. Mohammad Nabi will captain the team, with Najibullah Zadran serving as his deputy.
The squad has lost five players from the squad that represented Afghanistan in the Asia Cup 2022, while five new players have been added. Players who did not make the final cut include Samiullah Shinwari, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Afsar Zazai, Karim Janat, and Noor Ahmad. Middle-order batter Darwish Rasooli, leg-spinner Qais Ahmad, and right-arm fast bowler Salim Safi have all been named. Afsar Zazai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Rahmat Shah, and Gulbadin Naib are the team's reserves.
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AFG T20 World Cup TeamAfghanistan Full Squad | |
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Mohammad Nabi (c) Najibullah Zadran (vc) Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk) Azmatullah Omarzai Darwish Rasooli Fareed Ahmad Malik Fazal Haq Farooqi Hazratullah Zazai |
Ibrahim Zadran Mujeeb ur Rahman Naveen ul Haq Qais Ahmad Rashid Khan Saleem Safi Usman Ghani |
Standbys: Afsar Zazai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Rahmat Shah, Gulbadin Naib | ||
Darwish Rasooli, all-rounder Qais Ahmad, and right-arm quick Salim Safi have been added to the squad. Rasooli, 22, made his international debut earlier this year after recovering from a finger injury and putting in strong performances in the Shpageeza Cricket League 2022.
Rashid Khan: Rashid Khan, the star of Afghanistan's leg spinners, can misdirect any top-order batsman and even contribute as a middle-order batsman in the middle and closing overs of an innings. Khan, on the other hand, is one of the best T20I bowlers in the world right now.
Naveen-ul-Haq: Afghanistan vs. Bangladesh Before making his ODI debut, he was a member of Afghanistan's Under-19 Cricket World Cup team in 2016. In December of that year, he led Afghanistan in the Under-19 Asia Cup. In the Desert T20 Challenge in 2017. On January 19, however, Naveen made his Twenty20 (T20) debut for Afghanistan against Namibia.
Afghanistan is in Super 12 Group 1 with defending champions Australia, 2021 finalists New Zealand, and 2010 champion England. In their group, they will be accompanied by two qualifiers. Afghanistan will take on England in their first Super 12 match on October 22. The World Cup kicks off on October 16 with round one matches, followed by the Super 12 stage on October 22. The final will take place on November 13th.
| Date | Match | Time(IST) | Venue |
| 22 October, Saturday | England vs Afghanistan | 7:00 pm | Perth Stadium, Perth |
| 26 October, Wednesday | New Zealand vs Afghanistan | 7:00 pm | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne |
| 28 October, Friday | Afghanistan vs Group B Runner-up | 3:00 pm | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne |
| 1 November, Tuesday | Afghanistan vs Group A Winner | 2:00 pm | The Gabba, Brisbane |
| 4 November, Friday | Australia vs Afghanistan | 6:30 pm | Adelaide Oval, Adelaide |
