Afghanistan’s star spinner Rashid Khan has been left out of the preliminary 20-member squad for their upcoming one-off Test against New Zealand, scheduled to take place in Greater Noida from September 9 to 13.
Rashid, who last played a Test match for Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi in March 2021, was notably absent from the squad without any explanation provided by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB). The squad is set to depart for India on August 28 to participate in a one-week preparatory camp.
Recently, Rashid captained Speen Ghar Tigers in the Shpageeza T20 League in Kabul, where he showcased his skills by scoring 53 off 26 balls and taking a wicket in a shortened match. His stint with Trent Rockets in The Hundred was cut short earlier due to a hamstring injury. Ahmad Shah Sulimankhel, the chief selector, mentioned that 20 players have been chosen for the training camp, and a final 15-member squad will be selected based on their performance and fitness to play the Test against New Zealand.
Among the notable inclusions is seam-bowling all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai, who is poised to make his Test debut after being named in the preliminary squad. Although Omarzai has become a regular in Afghanistan's white-ball setup, he is yet to earn his Test cap and has limited experience in first-class cricket, having played just five matches. His recent withdrawal from the CPL, where he was replaced by England’s Sam Billings, was likely due to the upcoming Test and the subsequent ODI series against South Africa in the UAE.
Hashmatullah Shahidi will continue as captain, and Afghanistan will have a new assistant coach, R Sridhar, for their series against New Zealand and South Africa. Sridhar previously served as India's fielding coach from 2014 to 2021 under Ravi Shastri’s tenure.
This Test against New Zealand will mark Afghanistan’s 10th overall and their third in 2024, the most they have played in a single calendar year.
Afghanistan Preliminary Squad for One-off Test Against New Zealand:
- Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain)
- Ibrahim Zadran
- Riaz Hassan
- Abdul Malik
- Rahmat Shah
- Baheer Shah Mahboob
- Ikram Alikhil (wk)
- Shahidullah Kamal
- Gulbadin Naib
- Afsar Zazai (wk)
- Azmatullah Omarzai
- Ziaurrahman Akbar
- Shamsurrahman
- Qais Ahmad
- Zahir Khan
- Nijat Masoud
- Farid Ahmad Malik
- Naveed Zadran
- Khalil Ahmad
- Yama Arab