Afghanistan name squad for one-off Test against Sri Lanka, Rashid Khan ruled out
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has named the squad for their one-off Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo, beginning on February 2nd,. Rashid Khan continues to recover after undergoing surgery for his back injury and is sidelined, prompting the selectors to include Qais Ahmed, who made his international debut in 2022.
Noor Ali Zadran is in line to play his maiden Test, while right-arm seamer Naveed Zadran and keeper-batter Mohammed Ishaq have earned maiden call-ups to the Test side. The duo reportedly performed well during the 2023 edition of Ahmad Shah Abdali First Class and the recently held Ghazi Amanullah Khan Regional List A competition.
The Test will be Afghanistan's first against Sri Lanka and 8th overall. Afghanistan have 6 more Tests lined up this year, consisting of 2 against Bangladesh and a solitary one against New Zealand at home. The 8 Tests have seen them secure one victory each against Bangladesh, Ireland, and Zimbabwe.
Afghanistan squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmat Shah (VC), Ikram Alikhail (WK), Mohammad Ishaq (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Noor Ali Zadran, Abdul Malik, Baheer Shah, Nasir Jamal, Qais Ahmad, Zahir Khan, Zia Ur Rehman Akbar, Yamin Ahmadzai, Nijat Masoud, Mohammad Saleem Safi and Naveed Zadran.
"Quite pleasing to be playing our first test against Sri Lanka" - Afghanistan Cricket Board's chairman
ACB Chairman Mirwais Ashraf hopes to build a formidable red-ball and white-ball side on the back of playing some strong sides in 2024. He said, as quoted by the official website:
"It’s quite pleasing to be playing our first test against Sri Lanka, who have a rich history of playing test-match cricket. The year 2024 is packed with test cricket for us, as we will be playing several test matches during the year. Same as our white-ball lineups, we are committed to strengthening our red-ball cricket and building a formidable test side as well."
Chief Selector Ahmad Shah Sulimankhil feels the 10-day conditioning camp in Abu Dhabi, followed by a two-week preparation stint in Nangarhar should keep them in good stead.
"The team underwent a two-week preparation camp in Nangarhar followed by a 10-day conditioning camp in Abu Dhabi, which featured all the support staff to work with the players and ensure full preparation for the series. We have thoroughly monitored the camps and have picked the squad which includes several new faces who have excelled well during the recent domestic events."
Afghanistan and Sri Lanka will also lock horns in 3 ODIs and as many T20Is after the one-off Test.