The person who will take Afghanistan cricket advance…
In the last two years, Afghanistan has taken the cricket world by storm. The Afghan Atalans, as the team is called, reached the semi-finals of the 2024 T20 World Cup. A year ago in the 2023 ODI World Cup, they defeated defending champions England, and former World Cup winners Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Afghanistan would have reached the semi-finals had Glenn Maxwell not scored a once-in-a-lifetime double ton against them at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Over the years, Afghanistan’s victories have been largely due to the performances of ball players such as Rashid Khan, Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman and Noor Ahmad. Batsmen Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Najibullah Zadran have also made their contribution. More recently, two fast bowlers – Fazalhaq Farooqui and Naveen-ul-Haq – have also turned the tide in Afghanistan’s favour. Not to forget, veteran and Afghan cricket legend Mohammad Nabi, who has been through it all – from the days of morale-destroying defeats to the present times of favourable results.
Their success has inspired a new generation of Afghan cricketers, who are ready to take over the responsibility and bring further glory to Afghanistan.
Here are some promising players who will take Afghanistan cricket forward…
Baheer Shah (Top order batsman)
A technically sound top-order batsman, Shah has a first-class average of 59.16 and three hundreds to his name. Afghanistan’s ODI and Test captain Hashmatullah Shahidi has been effusive in his praise of Shah and has high hopes for him. The 24-year-old, at 18 years and 251 days, became the second-youngest player, behind Javed Miandad, to score a triple century in first-class cricket. Shah scored his 1,000th run in first-class cricket in his eleventh innings, the second-fastest behind Australia’s Bill Ponsford.
Riaz Hasan (Opening batsman)
Opening batsman Riaz Hassan has been tipped to take Afghanistan to the next level. The 22-year-old has played in five ODIs, and, like Baheer Shah, has an average of over 50 (56.31) in first-class cricket. Recently, India’s champion off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin shared his excitement about Shah and Hassan, who he believes will be crucial to Afghanistan’s future in Test cricket. In fact, Ashwin compared the role of the two young Afghan batsmen to that played by former Indian cricketers Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif in India’s cricketing success in the early 2000s.
Qais Ahmed (leg spinner)
Coming from the Afghan handball nursery, leg spinner Qais Ahmed has made a name for himself in franchise-based T20 leagues around the world. The 24-year-old has featured for the Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash League (BBL). In the Caribbean Premier League, he has been a regular and has featured for St Lucia Stars, Barbados Royals, Guyana Amazon Warriors and Jamaica Tallawahs. Apart from his exploits in the shortest format, Qais has a very good record in first-class cricket. He has 70 wickets in just 13 first-class matches at an average of 21.44 and a strike-rate of 37.1.
Zahir Khan (Left wrist twist)
A Chinese national, Zahir is a rare player as there is always an element of mystery attached to such bowlers. The 25-year-old has played in the BBL for Melbourne Stars, Melbourne Renegades and Brisbane Heat in various seasons. In fact, in 2018, he was drafted by Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League; however, he was ruled out of the season due to injury. Zahir impressed during his U-19 spell with Afghanistan. He played five Tests and took 11 wickets, but his first-class career has been nothing short of extraordinary. Zahir has taken 106 wickets in 22 matches at an average of 22.66 and a strike-rate of 32.4.
Naveed Zadran (Fast bowler)
English: All but 19, Naveed Zadran was originally part of Afghanistan’s Test squad for the one-off Test against New Zealand, but a side injury ruled him out later. The Afghanistan team management rested him in the hope that he would improve before South Africa’s ODI series in the UAE. Naveed is a fast right-arm fast bowler, who can swing the ball both ways. He has played two Tests, taking nine wickets at an average of 22.5 and a strike-rate of 35.5. At first-class level, he has 46 wickets in 10 matches to his credit (average: 24.50, strike-rate: 36.8). Standing at just over 6ft tall, Naveed is the tallest wicket-taker on spin-friendly Afghanistan wickets in the 2023 first-class season.
In the last two years, Afghanistan has taken the cricket world by storm. The Afghan Atalans, as the team is called, reached the semi-finals of the 2024 T20 World Cup. A year ago in the 2023 ODI World Cup, they defeated defending champions England, and former World Cup winners Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Afghanistan would have reached the semi-finals had Glenn Maxwell not scored a once-in-a-lifetime double ton against them at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Over the years, Afghanistan’s victories have been largely due to the performances of ball players such as Rashid Khan, Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman and Noor Ahmad. Batsmen Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Najibullah Zadran have also made their contribution. More recently, two fast bowlers – Fazalhaq Farooqui and Naveen-ul-Haq – have also turned the tide in Afghanistan’s favour. Not to forget, veteran and Afghan cricket legend Mohammad Nabi, who has been through it all – from the days of morale-destroying defeats to the present times of favourable results.
Their success has inspired a new generation of Afghan cricketers, who are ready to take over the responsibility and bring further glory to Afghanistan.
Here are some promising players who will take Afghanistan cricket forward…
Baheer Shah (Top order batsman)
A technically sound top-order batsman, Shah has a first-class average of 59.16 and three hundreds to his name. Afghanistan’s ODI and Test captain Hashmatullah Shahidi has been effusive in his praise of Shah and has high hopes for him. The 24-year-old, at 18 years and 251 days, became the second-youngest player, behind Javed Miandad, to score a triple century in first-class cricket. Shah scored his 1,000th run in first-class cricket in his eleventh innings, the second-fastest behind Australia’s Bill Ponsford.
Riaz Hasan (Opening batsman)
Opening batsman Riaz Hassan has been tipped to take Afghanistan to the next level. The 22-year-old has played in five ODIs, and, like Baheer Shah, has an average of over 50 (56.31) in first-class cricket. Recently, India’s champion off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin shared his excitement about Shah and Hassan, who he believes will be crucial to Afghanistan’s future in Test cricket. In fact, Ashwin compared the role of the two young Afghan batsmen to that played by former Indian cricketers Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif in India’s cricketing success in the early 2000s.
Qais Ahmed (leg spinner)
Coming from the Afghan handball nursery, leg spinner Qais Ahmed has made a name for himself in franchise-based T20 leagues around the world. The 24-year-old has featured for the Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash League (BBL). In the Caribbean Premier League, he has been a regular and has featured for St Lucia Stars, Barbados Royals, Guyana Amazon Warriors and Jamaica Tallawahs. Apart from his exploits in the shortest format, Qais has a very good record in first-class cricket. He has 70 wickets in just 13 first-class matches at an average of 21.44 and a strike-rate of 37.1.
Zahir Khan (Left wrist twist)
A Chinese national, Zahir is a rare player as there is always an element of mystery attached to such bowlers. The 25-year-old has played in the BBL for Melbourne Stars, Melbourne Renegades and Brisbane Heat in various seasons. In fact, in 2018, he was drafted by Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League; however, he was ruled out of the season due to injury. Zahir impressed during his U-19 spell with Afghanistan. He played five Tests and took 11 wickets, but his first-class career has been nothing short of extraordinary. Zahir has taken 106 wickets in 22 matches at an average of 22.66 and a strike-rate of 32.4.
Naveed Zadran (Fast bowler)
English: All but 19, Naveed Zadran was originally part of Afghanistan’s Test squad for the one-off Test against New Zealand, but a side injury ruled him out later. The Afghanistan team management rested him in the hope that he would improve before South Africa’s ODI series in the UAE. Naveed is a fast right-arm fast bowler, who can swing the ball both ways. He has played two Tests, taking nine wickets at an average of 22.5 and a strike-rate of 35.5. At first-class level, he has 46 wickets in 10 matches to his credit (average: 24.50, strike-rate: 36.8). Standing at just over 6ft tall, Naveed is the tallest wicket-taker on spin-friendly Afghanistan wickets in the 2023 first-class season.
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