Asia Cup 2018: Afghanistan picks up three new players in the 17-man squad

Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Monday announced a 17-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2018 that will start from September 15 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Three new players- Sayed Sherzad, Munir Ahmad and Wafadar Momand- were called in the squad. Of them, Sherzad and Wafadar had the opportunity to put on the national team jersey in Twenty20I and Test cricket respectively. On the other hand, Munir Ahmad is yet to make debut in any format of the game. 

The reason behind taking both Sherzad and Wafadar was to bolster the pace attack. Wafadar, the 18-year-old fast bowler, impressed with his performance in Afghanistan’s maiden Test match against India earlier this year. The 23-year-old left-arm pacer, Sherzad, has so far played three T20Is.

The main strength of the Afghanistan cricket team is their spin trio- Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. No doubt, they will play a vital role on the tricky Asian tracks.

Veteran cricketer Dawlat Zadran failed to make his place in the squad. He was a member of the squad that won the ODI series 2-1 in Ireland recently. Despite being experienced player, he could not make it to the playing XI in any of the three ODIs on the tour.

Afghanistan will face Sri Lanka in their first match in Asia Cup campaign on September 17.

Squad: Asghar Afghan (c), Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Ihsanullah Janat, Javed Ahmadi, Rahmat Shah, Hashmat Shahidi, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Najibullah Zadran, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, Aftab Alam, Samiullah Shinwari, Munir Ahmad Kakar (wk), Sayed Ahmad Sherzad, Sharafudin Ashraf, Wafadar.