Afghanistan announce squad for one-off Test against Ireland, Rahmanullah Gurbaz included

The National Selection Committee of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced a 16-member squad for the one-off Test against Ireland, scheduled to take place at the at the Tolerance Oval in
Abu Dhabi from February 28 to March 3. The Test will be their second game against each other. Both teams last met in a Test in Dehradun in March 2019, with Afghanistan prevailing by a margin of seven wickets.

Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead the side, with Rahmat Shah serving as his deputy. Young wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz has received his Test call-up and is expected to make his debut against Ireland. Khalil Gurbaz, a right-arm leg-spinner, has also been included in the squad to contribute with his leg-break bowling skills. He has recently had an excellent record in first class cricket, taking 40 wickets in 17 innings, with a best of six-wicket haul in an innings.

The ACB has recalled the medium-fast bowler, Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, who was part of Afghanistan's tour to Bangladesh in June 2023. Meanwhile, Yamin Ahmadzai and Mohammad Saleem Safi, who were part of the squad for the Sri Lanka Test earlier in February, were not selected owing to injuries. Interestingly enough, Afghanistan showed promise against Sri Lanka in the one-off Test at the Singhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground, although losing the game by 10 wickets. 

Also read: Ireland's James McCollum upbeat about Afghanistan Test

🚨 SQUAD ALERT 🚨

Here's AfghanAtalan's lineup for the one-off Test Match against Ireland! 👍

Go well, Boys! 🤩

More👉: https://t.co/WtIQI15Htw pic.twitter.com/RkzoqhhzAK

— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) February 26, 2024

The one-off Test match against Ireland will be Afghanistan's ninth Test match overall. Following this game, Afghanistan will play five more Test matches this year, including a two-match home series against Bangladesh and a one-off home Test against New Zealand. Apart from a win against Ireland in 2019, Afghanistan had previously won two more matches each against Bangladesh (2019) and Zimbabwe (2021).

ACB CEO Naseeb Khan states that Afghanistan carries a rich playing history against Ireland over the past 15 years. “We have quite a good playing history with Ireland, both countries have played plenty of cricket against each other and have been granted ICC Full Membership at the same time. This will be our second test against them and we are eagerly looking forward to what will be an exciting test match between the two team.” “We will also be playing tests against Bangladesh, New Zealand (for the first time) and Zimbabwe later in the year, so we are looking forward to building a formidable lineup for the test matches ahead.” Said.

Ahmad Shah Sulimankhil, ACB’s interim Chief Selector: “The team underwent a 10-day conditioning camp in Abu Dhabi, which featured 22 players and all the support staff to work with the players and ensure full preparation for the series. We have thoroughly monitored the proceedings and have picked the squad which includes several new faces who have excelled well during the recent domestic events.”

Also read: Matthew Foster earns debut call-up as Ireland name squad for Afghanistan series

Afghanistan squad for one-off Test versus Ireland

Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmat Shah (VC), Ikram Alikhail (WK), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Noor Ali Zadran, Abdul Malik, Baheer Shah, Nasir Jamal, Karim Janat, Khalil Gurbaz, Zahir Khan, Zia Ur Rehman Akbar, Nijat Masoud, Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, Naveed Zadran