Rashid Khan thanks Afghanistan Cricket Board for appointing him the captain

Afghanistan team endured a disastrous World Cup 2019 campaign, losing all its matches, most of them by huge margins. Though they managed to put up close fights against India and Pakistan, it could never perform as a unit and remained inconsistent throughout. Going into the tournament, Afghanistan had a lot of hopes from their spin trio of Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, but they could not deliver when it mattered the most.

Apart from the players, there was a lot of discussion over Gulbadin Naib’s poor captaincy. Prior to the tournament, he had been appointed the captain over experienced Asghar Afghan, but he took some poor calls that cost the team. The biggest of these was his decision to bowl the 46th over against Pakistan. He leaked 18 runs in that over, and that completely titled the game in the opposition’s favour.

Following the conclusion of the tournament, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) decided to axe Naib from the role. They have appointed Rashid Khan as the captain of the team across all three formats, with former captain Asghar Afghan his deputy. Rashid for the last couple of years has been a top performer for the team and in T20 tournaments across the world, he brings in a lot of experience and young energy into the role.

Rashid promises to bring success to the team

Rashid thanked the ACB for choosing him as the skipper of the team. He also thanked Gulbadin Naib and the ACB also promised to bring success for his country.

“I would like to thank @ACB Officials for my appointment as captain of Afghanistan National Cricket Team. It’s an honour and privilege to serve Afghanistan in this very important role. Many thanks to @GBNaib for his support and together we will strive to bring success & victories.” tweeted Rashid.

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In March 2018, the leg-spinner had become the youngest captain in the history of international cricket when he led the team in the World Cup 2019 Qualifiers. His first assignment will be the one-off Test against Bangladesh in September followed by a full home series against West Indies.