Rashid Khan to captain Afghanistan in T20 World Cup

Rashid Khan will captain Afghanistan in the upcoming T20 World Cup. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced a 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup with him. The same team will play a three-match series against the West Indies in this edition before the T20 World Cup.

Rashid Khan to captain Afghanistan in T20 World Cup

Pacemaker Fazlhaq Farooqui and batting all-rounder Gulbadin Naib, who were not included in the Bangladesh tour last October, have been returned to the T20 World Cup squad. Off-spinner Mujeeb ur Rehman and pacer Naveen-ul-Haq have also been included in the team. With Mujeeb being kept in the main squad, another spinner, Allah Mohammad Ghaznafar, has been placed in the reserve player list. He is accompanied by Ijaz Ahmadzai and Zia ur Rahman Sharafi.

Naveen, who missed the Asia Cup in September, has returned after recovering from a shoulder injury. He last played a T20I for Afghanistan in December 2024 against Zimbabwe. Rashid Khan captained Afghanistan in the T20I series in Bangladesh last October. Then, in the tour of Zimbabwe in November, the leg-spinner, the highest wicket-taker in international T20Is, led the team in the first two matches. In Rashid’s absence, Ibrahim Zadran was the captain in the third and final match. This time, Rashid will remain the captain in the T20 World Cup, with Zadran as the co-captain.

Afghanistan played in the semi-finals of the last T20 World Cup in 2024. This is the team’s highest achievement in an ICC tournament. The next T20 World Cup will start in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 next year.

Afghanistan squad for the T20 World Cup:
Rashid Khan (captain), Ibrahim Zadran (vice-captain), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Ishaq (wicketkeeper), Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasuli, Shahidullah Kamal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Noor Ahmed, Mujeeb ur Rehman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazlhaq Farooqui and Abdullah Ahmadzai. Reserves: Allah Ghazanfar, Ijaz Ahmadzai and Zia ur Rahman Sharafi.

Afghanistan’s opponents in Group D of the T20 World Cup are New Zealand, South Africa, United Arab Emirates and Canada. Afghanistan will start the T20 World Cup by facing New Zealand on February 8 in Chennai.