Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Monday announced the squad for ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.
As per the selection committee, the squad was selected considering the fitness and performance over the last six months, ACB said in a statement, adding that the committee also announced that Ikram Alikhil, Karim Jannat and Sayed Shirzad are considered as reserve players.
“It is having been a six-month preparation process for the ICC Cricket World Cup. The mission is to play inspirational cricket in the tournament. I know there are strong teams, but we will do our level best to achieve our goals,” the chief selector Dawlat Khan Ahmadzai said.
“As chief selector, it is my duty to select a competitive team. However, there were some challenges that we needed to handle. We selected the best squad considering factors such as experience, fitness, team balance, current form and conditions,” Ahmadzai said, adding that “we hope to play great cricket without any fear and with a fighting spirit in the tournament.”
Hamid Hassan, Afghanistan’s fast bowler is also included in the squad after a very-long injury.
“Luckily for us, the come-back of senior fast bowler Hamid Hassan is good news. However, we will take into account his form and fitness during upcoming practice matches,” Ahmadzai said.
Ahmadzai added that since the World Cup will be played with league system, every team will play nine matches. Taking this into account, the young wicketkeeper batsman Ikram Alikhil has also been placed in the reserve list.
“The final decision has been made based on many facts and considerations. I would like to thank all those who continue to support our national heroes,” he said.
The squad is as follows:
Gulbadin Naib (C), Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Noor Ali Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari, Mohammad Nabi, CRashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan and Mujeeb ur Rahman.
