Video of young Afghanistan bowler with action similar to Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood goes viral [Watch]
A video of a young Afghanistan cricketer, with bowling action similar to Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood, has gone viral on social media. The video, posted on X (formerly Twitter), shows an Afghan boy bowling to a batter in the nets.
Everything from the youngster's run-up to bowling action and delivery resembles Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood. His bowling action and a slow-motion replay of the same can be seen in the video posted on X below:
The Afghanistan cricket team has produced some quality fast bowlers in the recent past. The likes of Azmatullah Omarzai, Fazalhaq Farooqi, and Naveen-ul-Haq are among the top pacers in their team at the moment.
While the Asian side are known for producing top-class spinners like Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman among many others, pacers like Fazalhaq and Naveen have also represented them successfully on the global stage. They also regularly feature in various franchise leagues around the world.
Josh Hazlewood named in Australia's Champions Trophy squad despite injury concerns
Meanwhile, Australia have included pacer Josh Hazlewood in their squad for the upcoming 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan. He had sustained a strain to his right calf during the third Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 Test against India in Brisbane.
He was subsequently ruled out of the remaining two Tests of the series. Hazlewood was also not picked in Australia's squad for their upcoming two-Test series against Sri Lanka, which begins on January 29.
Interestingly, however, the 34-year-old has been named in Australia's squad for the Champions Trophy. It is expected that he will recover in time to take part in the white-ball tournament. The Champions Trophy is scheduled to begin on February 19 and will be held in Pakistan and Dubai.
Notably, Josh Hazlewood played an important role in Australia's triumph at the 2023 ODI World Cup in India. The right-arm quick bagged 16 wickets from 11 matches at an average of 28.06 and an economy rate of 4.81.