The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced a preliminary squad of 20 players for the upcoming one-off Test match against New Zealand, scheduled to take place from September 9-13 in Greater Noida, India. The selected players will depart for India on August 28 for a week-long preparation camp.
The final squad will be announced at the end of the camp, with the selection committee considering players’ performance and fitness. Afghanistan suffered a six-wicket defeat in their most recent Test match against Ireland in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.
“20 players have been selected for the training camp and a 15-member squad will be selected to play the only Test match against New Zealand after observing their performance and fitness,” said Afghanistan chief selector Ahmad Shah Sulimankhel.
ACB chairman Mirwais Ashraf expressed his delight at the inclusion of young players who have performed well in domestic cricket. He emphasized the significance of this event, marking the first time the two nations will engage in a bilateral cricket series.
“It is worth mentioning that before the 9th edition of Shpageeza Cricket League, these players attended a full package preparation camp in Nangarhar province too that carries similar conditions to India,” he added.
The Afghanistan preliminary squad includes:
* Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain)
* Ibrahim Zadran
* Riaz Hassan
* Abdul Malik
* Rahmat Shah
* Baheer Shah Mahboob
* Ikram Alikhel (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
