Afghanistan announces 17-member squad for Asia Cup 2022, No. 1 ranked T20 all-rounder will lead the team
The next edition of the Asia Cup 2022 will start on August 27, Saturday. The first game will see Sri Lanka take on Afghanistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. A total of six teams will compete, including one qualifying team.
All the other major teams have already announced their squads for the Asia Cup, and now the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has also announced a 17-member squad for the multi-nation Asian tournament. On August 16, the ACB offciaily announced their squad and has made a few interesting changes.
The veteran spin-bowling all-rounder Mohammad Nabi will lead the side in the tournament, and Samiullah Shinwari has made a comeback to the team in place of Sharafuddin Ashraf, who is in the squad for the ongoing five-match T20I series against Ireland.
The tournament will be played in the UAE, and the pitches in the UAE always assist the spinners, and Afghanistan has made their spin-bowling department stronger by adding left-arm wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad to the squad. Notably, Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman are also in the team.
ACB Name Squad for Asia Cup 2022
— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) August 16, 2022
Kabul, 16 August 2022: Afghanistan Cricket Board today announced its 17-member squad for the ACC Men's T20 Asia Cup 2022, which will be played from 27th August to 11th September in the United Arab Emirates.
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Najibullah Zadran will assist Nabi as the vice-captain of the team. Gulbadin Naib didn't get his chance in the team as it looks like he is out of the plan in the T20I for Afghanistan. Naib last appeared in the last T20 World Cup in 2021 in the UAE. They are currently playing a five-match series against Ireland.
Having lost both opening games, Afghanistan made a brilliant comeback and won the next two games. And now the series is level at 2-2, with the final match to be played on Wednesday, August 17. After the fifth and final match, the team will fly to the UAE for the Asia Cup.
Apart from the 17 players, the ACB has also named three players as the backups. Nijat Masoud, Sharafuddin Ashraf , and Qais Ahmad are the reserve players for the team.
Asia Cup Squad for Afghanistan
Mohammad Nabi (C), Najibullah Zadran (Vc), Naveen ul Haq, Afsar Zazai (Wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Farid Ahmad Malik, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Fazal Haq Farooqi, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Mujib ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, and Samiullah Shinwari.