Ibrahim returns, Mujeeb misses out as ACB announced squad for TC

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Afghanistan Cricket Board’s National Selection Committee on Sunday announced National Team’s squad for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy, which is scheduled to be played from February 19 to March 09 this year in Pakistan and UAE.

Afghanistan’s prolific top-order batter, Ibrahim Zadran, who was away from action due to an ankle injury, has returned to the squad, a statement from the ACB said.

However, Mujeeb Ur Rahman misses out on the selection, as AM Ghazanfar, a similar mystery spinner, has made the cut for the mega event.

The squad also included Sediqullah Atal, who recently had an impressive performance in the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe, earning the Player of the Series title by scoring a total of 156 runs, including a century and a half-century in two games.

ACB Chairman Mr. Mirwais Ashraf stated, “Afghan Atalan have performed exceptionally well in the past two ICC events, the CWC23 and the ICC World T20 2024.

Their impressive performances in these two event coupled with their ODI series victories last year will undoubtedly boost their morale and help them deliver an even better campaign this time.”

He also added, “The appointment of mentors has proven to be quite beneficial for us in both of the last two events. Given this success, we have appointed Mr. Younis Khan, who has extensive international and local experience, and we look forward to making full use of his expertise during the event.”

ACB Interim Chief Selector Mr. Ahmad Suliman Khil commented, “Mujeeb Ur Rahman was not available for the selection as he has been advised by his doctor to focus on T20s for a while to ensure his full recovery before returning to ODIs. That was also the reason he missed on the recently concluded ODI series against Zimbabwe.”

“Conditions in Pakistan are similar to those in Afghanistan and the UAE, where we usually play. We will conduct a preparation camp in multiple phases before embarking on our journey for the big event. The expectations are high, and I hope the team will prepare well and deliver some excellent performances, just as they did in the last two World Cups.” He added.

Afghanistan’s 15-man Squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025:

Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmat Shah (VC), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ikram Alikhil (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Naveed Zadran and Farid Ahmad Malik.

Darwish Rasooli, Nangyal Kharoti and Bilal Sami are part of the reserve pool for the event.

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