IND vs AFG: Ajinkya Rahane not ready to undermine Afghanistan

India are scheduled to play a one-off Test match versus Afghanistan from June 14 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Virat Kohli won’t take part in the visitor’s maiden match in Whites and Ajinkya Rahane has been assigned the role of leading the side. The Afghans have had a fairytale journey in cricket. They were an unknown entity even a decade ago and their meteoric rise has captured the imaginations of everyone.

Their players have also been parts of overseas domestic tournaments owing to their stupendous display of cricket. The likes of Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi have been brilliant and have taken the country’s cricket to greater heights. Last year, they were granted Test status along with Ireland and this year they qualified for the ICC World Cup for the second time.

“Afghanistan can’t be taken lightly”- Rahane

Meanwhile, Rahane iterated India’s approach in the historic Test while appreciating the Afghans for their achievement. “Qualifying for a Test is the biggest thing for Afghanistan cricket and that is good for cricket. We don’t want to take any team lightly. We just want to go out there and play with the same intensity as we do with every other team,” Rahane was quoted as saying by the Deccan Chronicle.

Rashid has been outstanding, both for the Afghans and whichever team he went on to represent in his short, yet illustrious career. He played for the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League and picked up 21 wickets in 16 matches. The interim Indian skipper hailed the teenager for his recent exploits. He also mentioned that India won’t be complacent, bearing in mind the opponents’ quality.

“He is doing really well, especially in the shorter format T20, he did fantastic for Sunrisers, he is a quality bowler and everyone needs to accept and respect that. Afghanistan can’t be taken lightly, because in cricket and in generally in life you cannot take anything for granted,” the 29-year-old added.

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