AFG VS PAK, 2023
Noor Ahmed’s return augurs well for his World Cup chances © Getty
The Afghanistan Cricket Board has named an 18-member squad for the three-match ODI series against Pakistan in Sri Lanka, which will be played between August 22 and 26, 2023. The series will be a precursor to the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, and later, the 2023 Men’s ODI World Cup in India.
Fast bowlers Mohammad Saleem Safi and Wafadar Momand retain their spots after Afghanistan’s recent successful ODI series in Bangladesh, where they won the series 2-1. Zia ur Rahman, the left-arm spinner who debuted in the Bangladesh series, was left out, alongside uncapped legspinner Izharulhaq Naveed. On the other hand, Noor Ahmad, who had a successful IPL campaign, made a comeback into the squad.
The inclusion of Noor Ahmad in the Asia Cup suggests that he is in the reckoning for the World Cup, considering ACB chief selector Asadullah Khan’s earlier statement to Cricbuzz – that they were done experimenting and that the selected squad would reflect the team that would travel for the World Cup.
The two reserve players for the squad include left-arm quick bowler Farid Ahmad Malik and left-handed batsman Shahidullah Kamal.
ACB chief selector Asadullah Khan reiterated that this series was a good preparation for the high-stakes ODI events coming up in the next few months, and were fully prepared with a supervised camp in Kabul and a conditioning camp prior to the Pakistan series.
“Our whole concentration is to prepare the team for the upcoming two big events of Asia Cup and the World Cup 2023,” said ACB chief selector Asadullah Khan. “This three-match ODI series against Pakistan provides us with a wonderful opportunity to prepare the team for the forthcoming two events.”
“The preparations for the Pakistan series are progressing well; the players have recently performed well in the Kabul Camp, which has been supervised by ACB’s HPC staff. The team will also undergo a week-long conditioning camp prior to the Pakistan Series.”
Afghanistan Squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Noor Ah
© Cricbuzz
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