Afghanistan’s star spinner Rashid Khan has been rested for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has confirmed that the decision was taken to keep the player in good shape.
The ACB said in a statement that resting Rashid was a “precautionary measure to prioritise his well-being and sustained performance for upcoming international events.” He will return as the captain in thethree-match T20I series against Zimbabwe.
Since Rashid will miss the Test, Afghanistan’s selectors have picked a squad that has a blend of experienced and new players. Hashmatullah Shahidi will be the captain. The batting will rely on Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Bahir Shah, and wicketkeepers Afsar Zazai and Ikram Alikhil. Ziaur Rahman, Sharafuddin Ashraf, and Khalil Gurbaz have been selected after performing in domestic cricket.
Left-handed all–rounder Shahidullah is part of both squads for his consistent performances. Bashir, who impressed against Bangladesh recently, has retained his place in the Test team.
In the T20I squad, Rashid will return as captain and Ibrahim Zadran will be the vice-captain. The squad includes experiencedplayers like Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Noor Ahmad. Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai will also makea comeback, along with pacers Fareed Malik and Abdullah Ahmadzai.
Matches on the Zimbabwe will be played in Harare from October 20 to November 2.
Test Squad
Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Afsar Zazai (WK), Ikram Alikhel (WK), Bashir Shah, Shahidullah, Ismat Alam, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Ziaur Rahman Akbar, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Khalil Gurbaz, Bashir Ahmad.
Reserves: Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, Sediqullah Atal, and Shams Ur Rahman.
T20I Squad
Rashid Khan (C), Ibrahim Zadran (VC), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Shahidullah, Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Bashir Ahmad, FareedMalik, Abdullah Ahmadzai.
Reserves: AM Ghazanfar and FaridoonDawoodzai.
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