Nabi, Naveen not part of ODI series against Netherlands

KABUL (Pajhwok): Mohammad Nabi has ruled himself out of Afghanistan’s upcoming ODI series against the Netherlands which starts in Doha on January 21, with a right-arm seamer Naveen-ul-Haq also not part of the 18-member squad, according to a media report on Sunday.

While Nabi said he wanted to clear the path for a younger player to get international experience, Naveen opted to take a break from the 50-over format and focus on preparing for the T20 World Cup to be held in Australia later this year, a report in the ESPNcricinfo said.

Afghanistan also recalled seam-bowling allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai, who has played a single ODI, last January.

Alongside the new faces, there was plenty of experience in the form of Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Rahmat Shah, Gulbadin Naib, Najibullah Zadran and Qais Ahmad, who has played a Test and T20I each but is uncapped in ODIs.

Afghanistan will be led by Hashmatullah Shahidi, who was appointed ODI captain last year.

The three-match ODI series between Afghanistan and Netherlands is part of the ICC’s World Cup Super League, points from which count towards qualification for the 2023 World Cup in India.

Squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Azmatullah Omarzai, Farid Malik, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Gulbadin Naib, Ikram Alikhail, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Qais Ahmad, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmat Shah, Rashid Khan, Riaz Hassan, Mohammad Saleem Safi, Shahidullah Kamal, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Usman Ghani, Yamin Ahmadzai.

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