ICC World Cup 2019: ACB announces Afghanistan squad for the tournament

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced the 15-man squad for the most-awaited upcoming World Cup, scheduled to start on Thursday, May 30 in England and Wales. The Afghans are deemed as one of the dark horses of the 50-overs mega event and are set to play their opening match against Australia at the County Ground in Bristol on Saturday, June 1.

The final squad has been selected from the 23-member probables that took part in the training camp held in Potchefstroom, South Africa. As per the selection committee, the selection process was conducted on the basis of performances and fitness of the players over the last six months.

The squad for the tournament will be captained by all-rounder Gulbadin Naib. A few weeks ago Asghar Afghan was sacked as the captain from all the three formats and Naib was named as the new skipper. Rashid Khan and Rahmat Shah selected as the new T20I and Test captain respectively.

No Shapoor Zadran in the mix

As far as the squad is concerned, it doesn’t have Shapoor Zadran, the hulk-like left-arm fast bowler, who was a part of Afghanistan’s maiden victory in the World Cup against Scotland in 2015. Hamid Hasan, another speedster, who last played a limited-overs international fixture way back in July 2016 against Ireland in Belfast, staked his claim back into the national setup.

“As chief selector, It is my duty to select a competitive team. However, there were some challenges that we needed to handle. We selected the best squad considering factors such as experience, fitness, team balance, current form and conditions,” Chief Selector, Dawlat Khan Ahmadzai mentioned.

“We hope to play great cricket without any fear and with a fighting spirit in the tournament. The final decision has been made based on many facts and considerations. I would like to thank all those who continue to support our national heroes,” he mentioned.

Here is the squad

Gulbadin Naib (C), Mohammad Shahzad (WK), Noor Ali Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

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