Afghanistan add Ghazanfar to squad for Tests vs Zimbabwe

Spinner Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar has been added to Afghanistan’s squad for their upcoming Test series against Zimbabwe, starting in Bulawayo on Thursday. The development comes after reports emerged of Rashid Khan being unavailable for the Boxing Day game due to personal reasons.

Ghazanfar has been added to Afghanistan’s squad for the two-match Test series against Zimbabwe, with the first one being scheduled to begin on Thursday in Bulawayo,” said the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) through their X post on Wednesday.

Ghazanfar’s maiden call-up to the Test team comes after he picked up impressive figures of 5/33 in the third ODI at Harare Sports Club, which helped Afghanistan secure an eight-wicket win and take a 2-0 series win. Interestingly, Ghazanfar is yet to play a first-class game in his cricketing career.

2024 has been a meteoric year for Ghazanfar, who began by playing for Afghanistan in the U19 Men’s World Cup in South Africa, where he bagged eight wickets in four matches at an economy rate of 3.35 and was followed by his senior ODI debut against Ireland in March.

He then guided Afghanistan A to winning their maiden ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup title in 2024, winning the Player of the Match award in the final against Sri Lanka A in Oman.

The series opening game against Afghanistan, to be played at the Queens Sports Club, will be the first time Zimbabwe will be hosting their first Boxing Day Test at home in 28 years. It will be followed by Zimbabwe hosting their first New Year’s Test, scheduled for Jan.2-6, 2025.

Rashid, Afghanistan’s star leg-spinner, will miss the opening Test of the two-match series.

According to a report by CricBuzz, the 26-year-old is scheduled to attend a charity event, and as a result, will not be available for the first Test match on Dec.26 in Bulawayo. He is expected to join the team for the second Test.

Rashid, who has not played a Test match since March 2021, had been absent from Afghanistan’s recent Test series due to injury and rest. Following that, a back injury led to a break from red-ball cricket as advised by his physicians, causing him to miss the national team’s red ball outings. Rashid then missed Afghanistan’s next Test assignments against Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Ireland due to a combination of rest and injury.

Left-arm spinner Zahir Shehzad and left-arm fast-bowler Bashir Ahmad Afghan have also been added to the team after putting in some impressive performances in the domestic first-class games. The Afghanistan Test squad comprises seven uncapped players, which also includes Azmatullah Omarzai, Fareed Ahmad Malik, and Riaz Hassan.

Nasir Jamal, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, and Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai are the three players who are part of the reserve players pool for the series. Afghanistan has previously won three Test matches, including one against Zimbabwe in 2021.

Agence France-Presse