After Mohammad Nabi, Shafiq Stanikzai wants to play First Test against India

Afghanistan Cricket Board’s CEO Shafiq Stanikzai, following the trend set by his compatriot Mohammad Nabi, wished to play India in their first Test match to display an act of regard for the BCCI and its support for its motive of acquiring the full membership and Test status.

The players of Afghanistan and Ireland have stolen all the limelight after they received their full membership and Test status a few days back. Mohammad Nabi was the first one to acknowledge the contribution of India in them achieving their goals.

BCCI granted the Afghans a stadium in Greater Noida to play their home games which eventually was responsible for them making giant strides in international cricket. Stanikzai, himself has been a pillar for their success as he has seen all the ebbs and flows of Afghanistan cricket as he holds the post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ACB. He vouched for the fact that the country shall work towards making progress in whites as well.

Stanikzai pays his respect to BCCI

“I would like to thank the BCCI for helping us so much. It is because of its effort that we could get Greater Noida as our home venue, and now that we work towards our Test debut, we would require the BCCI’s support in turning the Greater Noida stadium as a Test venue as well.” thanked Shafiq Stanikzai in the recent interview with Sportstar Live.

“If we (ACB, BCCI and the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority) collectively appeal to the ICC to grant a Test status to the Greater Noida stadium, I think our plea would be heard, and a nod would be given to turn the stadium into a Test centre. We are confident. We want to play our first Test against India and in India, so we will appeal to the ICC to give Greater Noida the green light. But as of now, we have other things to address as well.” claimed the CEO of ACB.

When asked about what is next for Afghanistan Cricket, Stanizai focussed on making their presence felt in international cricket. “Since cricket started in Afghanistan, we have showed consistent improvement. In the international arena, we have made our presence felt and that is something we would like to repeat in the longer format of the game as well.” concluded Stanikzai