Reports: Afghanistan will play their first Test against Zimbabwe

At the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Annual General Meeting earlier this year, Afghanistan and Ireland were granted Test status. The two teams, who already enjoyed T20 and one-day international status, had enjoyed success against Test-playing countries in global competitions, something that the international cricket board took note of.

Their rise in international cricket has been sensational – the cricket board was formed in 1995, but by 2011 they already gained full ODI status and also became an Associate member of the ICC in 2013. Their first ODI win came against Bangladesh in the 2014 Asia Cup, after which they made it to the World Cup 2015 where they beat Scotland to record their first ever World Cup win.

Now, as per latest reports by Sportswallah, Afghanistan will play their first ever Test against Zimbabwe, who have agreed to host them for 3 Tests, 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is in December-January. Reports also reveal that Zimbabwe were looking to host Bangladesh, but after the tour to South Africa, the Bangladeshi team was reluctant to travel to Harare. However, nothing has been confirmed yet. So far, Afghanistan have played Zimbabwe thrice in bilateral series and have won all the games.

The Afghan team has lost only a solitary match out of the 20 Intercontinental Cup matches they’ve played, which speaks volumes of their rise. After the Test status, BBC quoted Afghanistan Cricket Board chief executive Shafiq Stanikzai as saying: “For a nation like Afghanistan it is a huge and remarkable achievement. The entire nation will be celebrating across all five regions and different provinces – it is the perfect Eid gift.”

U19 World Cup qualification 

Recently, the Afghanistan U19 team qualified for the World Cup 2018, which is another remarkable account for the country. The boys remained unbeaten through the Division 1 Qualifiers and will thus be playing the mega event in Singapore next year. These constant strides prove that in a few years, Afghanistan will become the next big thing in international cricket.