Afghanistan named a 15-member squad for the upcoming World Cup 2023 to be played in India starting from 5th October onwards. It promises to be an exciting tournament as they qualified for the prestigious event directly finishing in the top 8 of the ICC Super League series.
The Afghan side could not qualify for the Super 4 stage as they could not chase 292 in the allotted time during a thrilling encounter against Sri Lanka at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. They lost to Bangladesh by 89 runs in their first league match which dented their run rate.
The main inclusion for Afghanistan is Naveen UL Haq who had an argument during the 2023 Indian Premier League match between Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bangalore in Lucknow.
Afghanistan will be led by Hashmatullah Shahidi and will look to create an upset too in the tournament. Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Najibullah Zadran, Riaz Hasan, and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi comprise of batters.
Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan are the two genuine all-rounders in the squad. The pace bowling department consists of Naveen UL Haq, and Fazallahq Farqooi, while Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Noor Ahmad comprise spin bowlers that can create havoc on Indian pitches. The all-rounder Gulbdain Naib, pacer Fareed Ahmad, and Sharfuddin Ashraf have been included in the reserves for the tournament.
Afghanistan Schedule for World Cup 2023
Afghanistan began their tournament with an interesting encounter against Bangladesh on 7th October at Dharamshala. They will then face one of the favourites India at Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi on 11th October.
They will then face defending Champions England in their 3rd match at Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi on 15th October. Their biggest challenge would be to face New Zealand in Chennai on 18th October before they face Pakistan at the same venue on 23rd October.
Afghanistan will lock horns with Sri Lanka at MCA Stadium, Pune on 30th October. They will then take on the Netherlands at Lucknow on 3rd November. Their next challenge would be against Australia at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on the 7th. They will then play their final league game at Ahmedabad against South Africa on 10th November. With their spin bowling department, they can upset one of the big teams.
Afghanistan Squad for WC 2023
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Riaz Hasan, Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Abdul Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazallahq Farooqi, Naveen UL Haq, Ikram Akhil, Azmatullah Omarzai.
Reserves: Gulbdain Naib, Fareed Ahmad, Sharfuddin Ashraf,
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