The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) selection committee announced a 15-man squad that will travel to Bangladesh for the one-off Test, scheduled to begin on June 14. Notably, the celebrated spinner Rashid Khan has been spared for the match.
Rashid Khan sustained a lower-back injury following the conclusion of the IPL 2023 and was subsequently ruled out of Sri Lanka’s first two ODIs. The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side lost the series 2-1 despite his participation in the third ODI contested on June 7 in Hambantota. However, he was unable to contribute significantly to his team’s victory.
Afghanistan assistant coach Raees Ahmadzai confirmed to Cricbuzz that Rashid Khan has been rested as part of workload management and in contemplation of his recent back injury.
“He (Rashid) was rested for the solitary Test match against Bangladesh because he had played too much nonstop cricket and we did not want to risk his back injury.”
Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead the national team, while Rahmat Shah will serve as his assistant. Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, Nijat Masoud, and Izharulhaq Naweed have been selected for the upcoming red-ball match against the Bangla Tigers. Zia ur Rahman Akbar, Noor Ali Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, and Sayed Ahmad Shirzad were added to the Bangladesh tour’s reserve list.
Litton Das will be the next leader of Bangladesh
Regarding the red-ball contingent of Bangladesh, Litton Das will head the team in the sole Test. The Bangladesh Cricket Board announced that Litton will captain the team while Shakib Al Hasan recovers from a finger injury. The selection committee has also called up uncapped batsman Shahadat Hossain and pacer Musfik Hasan.
Afghanistan travel to Bangladesh after losing the ODI series against Sri Lanka, 2-1. According to their head-to-head records, Bangladesh and Afghanistan have met once in the longest format, and Afghanistan asserted its dominance in that meeting.
In addition, after the conclusion of the Test, the two teams will play a three-match ODI series followed by two T20 encounters. The teams will attempt to construct a core squad in time for the 2023 ODI World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in India in October and November.
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