Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced its squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against India. Afghanistan will take on India for the series starting on January 11 as the teams gear up for the upcoming T20 World Cup in June. Notably, Mujeeb Ur Rahman has made a return to the squad.
The ACB has named a 19-member squad for the series against India. Mujeeb, who was at loggerheads with ACB, has been included in the team. Meanwhile, regular T20I captain Rashid Khan's participation is under threat. "Afghanistan Cricket Board’s Selection Committee named a 19-member Afghanistan National Squad for the three-match T20I Series against India starting this Thursday, January 11 in Mohali, India," ACB wrote in a press release.
"Rashid Khan, Afghanistan’s regular T20I Captain, has been included in the squad but might not feature in any game as he recovers from the back surgery he recently underwent. Meanwhile, Ibrahim Zadran, who led Afghanistan to a 2-1 series victory against the UAE in Sharjah, will continue to lead Afghanistan against India as well," the board added.
Notably, the board chairman is 'delighted' and believes Afghanistan will pose a strong challenge to India in the upcoming series. "We are delighted to be embarking on our maiden tour to India for a three-match series. India is the top-ranked side in the world and it’s very pleasing to witness AfghanAtalan competing in a three-match T20I against them. We believe that AfghanAtalan are no longer underdogs & have excelled well in the recent past and we look forward to a highly competitive series against India," he said.
Notably, Mujeeb, who was at loggerheads has made a return to the team. He was among the other Afghan players with a desire to get released from the ACB central contracts. The board sanctioned the trio to delay their central contracts and announced no NOC will be given to them for the next two years. Any current NOC was also revoked. Naveen and Farooqi went to the board with a desire to represent the country and were picked in the T20I series against UAE. However, Mujeeb, whose BBL season was cut short due to the change in the NOC issue, has now made a return to the national side.
The India vs Afghanistan series will begin on January 11 in Mohali, followed by the second and third games on January 14 and January 17, respectively.
Afghanistan’s Squad for the T20I Series against India: Ibrahim Zadran (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ikram Alikhil (WK), Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Azmaullah Omarzai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad, Naveen Ul Haq, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem, Qais Ahmad, Gulbadin Naib and Rashid Khan.
