Afghanistan Announces Squads for Test and T20I Series Against Zimbabwe

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has named the national team squads for the upcoming tour of Zimbabwe. Afghanistan will play a one-off Test and a three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe from October 20 to November 2 at the Harare Sports Club.

The squad includes several of the team’s top players. Afghanistan and Zimbabwe have played four Test matches so far, and both teams have won two each. Recently, Afghanistan toured Bangladesh for a white-ball series. They lost the three-match T20I series but made a strong comeback by winning all three matches in the ODI series.

Afghanistan Announces Squads for Test and T20I Series Against Zimbabwe

On Wednesday, October 15, the Afghanistan Cricket Board announced the team for the upcoming one-off Test match against Zimbabwe. Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead the side as captain. Left-arm fast bowler Bashir Ahmad has kept his place in the team. Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Sharafuddin Ashraf, and Khalil Gurbaz have been selected for the first time after doing well in domestic red-ball matches. Left-arm spinner Shahidullah Kamal has also been added to the squad.

Rashid Khan has been given a break from the upcoming Test match to manage his workload and stay fresh for future games. However, he will return to lead the team in the T20I series later this month. Shahidullah Kamal has earned his place after performing well in the recent SCL season, while middle-order batter Ijaz Ahmadzai makes a comeback after his T20I debut in 2024. AM Ghazanfar and Faridoon Dawoodzai have been added to the reserves for the series.

ACB CEO credits long-term plans for Afghanistan’s strong series performances

Afghanistan Cricket Board CEO Naseeb Khan said that the board’s long-term plans for domestic cricket and training centers have helped the national team perform well in back-to-back series.

“Alongside our domestic cricket and high-performance center programs, we have been successfully implementing our plans in international cricket. As a result, we are now consistently playing bilateral series one after another, and the outcomes of our long-term efforts have been very positive so far,” Naseeb Khan said.

“Following the Bangladesh series hosted by ACB, our national team will travel to Zimbabwe, where they will play a Test match and a T20I series against the host nation. Subsequently, we will also play series against other countries in sequence,” he added.

Afghanistan’s Test Squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Afsar Zazai (WK), Ikram Alikhel (WK), Bahir Shah, Shahidullah Kamal, Ismat Alam, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Zia Ur Rahman Akbar, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Khalil Gurbaz, and Bashir Ahmad.

Afghanistan’s T20I Squad: Rashid Khan (C), Ibrahim Zadran (VC), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Shahidullah Kamal, Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Bashir Ahmad, Fareed Ahmad Malik, and Abdullah Ahmadzai.

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