Afghan cricketers to undergo training in UAE ahead of SL series

KABUL (Pajhwok): The cricket board on Saturday announced a 24-member squad for training and preparation camp in the UAE ahead of this month’s three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka.

In a statement, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said the 24-member squad included players from the recently held ODI series against Zimbabwe as well as some with top performances in the domestic circuit from the last two years.

The team is: Skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi, Rahmat Shah (VC), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Najibullah Zadran, Shahidullah Kamal, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Zia ur Rahman Akbar, Noor Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Farid Ahmad, Yamin Ahmadzai, Nijat Masoud, AzmatullahOmarzai, Qais Ahmad, Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, Abdul Rahman, Sharafuddin Ashraf and Baheer Shah Mahboob.

The team departed for the UAE today where they will start their training and preparation camp tomorrow November 13 and will run till the 21st of November before departing for Sri Lanka on the 22nd.

Chief Selector Noorul Haq Malikzai said that the UAE camp was a very good opportunity for the team to prepare and build up things well for the Sri Lanka series. “We will be regularly observing the process and will try to select the best among them for the series. We have also included Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai and Baheer Shah Mahboob, two of our domestic players, who have put on consistent top performances in our domestic competitions, they will join the camp once their visas have been issued”. Malikzai added.

Afghanistan are scheduled to play three ICC Cricket World Cup Super League ODIs against Sri Lanka from 25th-30th November in Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy.

pr/ma