Kabul, Jan 12 (IANS) Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead Afghanistan in their maiden ICC Champions Trophy campaign as the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) named the 15-member squad on Sunday.
Prolific top-order batter, Ibrahim Zadran, who was away from action due to an ankle injury, has returned to the squad. He will accompany swashbuckling Rahmanullah Gurbaz at the top of the batting followed by the likes of Rahmat Shah and skipper Shahidi, making up for a strong top-four pairing.
However, Mujeeb Ur Rahman misses out on the selection, as AM Ghazanfar, a similar mystery spinner, has made the cut for the mega event.
“Mujeeb Ur Rahman was not available for the selection as he has been advised by his doctor to focus on T20s for a while to ensure his full recovery before returning to ODIs. That was also the reason he missed on the recently concluded ODI series against Zimbabwe,” Afghanistan interim chief selector Ahmad Suliman Khil said.
“Conditions in Pakistan are similar to those in Afghanistan and the UAE, where we usually play. We will conduct a preparation camp in multiple phases before embarking on our journey for the big event. The expectations are high, and I hope the team will prepare well and deliver some excellent performances, just as they did in the last two World Cups,” he added.
Star spinner Rashid Khan will lead the spin-bowling attack for the side alongside all-rounder Mohammad Nabi and Fazalhaq Farooqi, who is the pace spearhead.
The squad also includes Sediqullah Atal, who recently had an impressive performance in the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe, earning the Player of the Series title by scoring a total of 156 runs, including a century and a half-century in two games.
The team has also named – Darwish Rasooli, Nangyal Kharoti and Bilal Sami as reserves to go alongside the 15-member squad.
ACB Chairman Mirwais Ashraf stated, “AfghanAtalan have performed exceptionally well in the past two ICC events, the CWC23 and the ICC World T20 2024. Their impressive performances in these two events coupled with their ODI series victories last year will undoubtedly boost their morale and help them deliver an even better campaign this time.”
“The appointment of mentors has proven to be quite beneficial for us in both of the last two events. Given this success, we have appointed Younis Khan, who has extensive international and local experience, and we look forward to making full use of his expertise during the event.”
Afghanistan squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmat Shah (vc), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Naveed Zadran and Farid Ahmad Malik.
Reserves: Darwish Rasooli, Nangyal Kharoti, Bilal Sami.
Afghanistan are placed in Group B alongside England, Australia and South Africa. They will start their campaign against South Africa in Karachi on February 21 followed by matches against England and Australia on February 26 and 28, respectively in Lahore.
–IANS
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