ICC Men’s T20 World Cup: Afghanistan — the underdogs no one wants to face

Afghanistan is now a renowned name in the world of white-ball cricket and when it was announced that the 2021 edition of the International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 World Cup will be organised in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), many would’ve feared facing Mohammad Nabi-led unit.

The reason is that not only Afghan team play their home cricket in the UAE, the conditions there will be extremely suitable for their already dangerous-looking spin attack.

Afghanistan qualified directly for the Super 12s around ahead of the likes of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh which was an achievement on its own.

However, despite having a lot of political turmoil back home, the players will be hoping to take the team as deep as they can in the competition.

Afghanistan are placed in Group 2 of the Super 12s alongside 2009 champions Pakistan, 2007 winners India and New Zealand whereas two teams will join after the qualification round.

In the batting department, the team will be heavily relying on their captain and star all-rounder Nabi, who will have the services of former captain and middle-order batter Asghar Afghan, exciting top-order batter Hazratullah Zazai, dependable opener Hashmatullah Shahidi, experienced Najibullah Zadran, Usman Ghani and veteran wicketkeeper Mohammad Shahzad to put a respectable total on the board.

The bowling department is spin-heavy where the likes of Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Nabi are more than capable of troubling any opposition on a spinning track.

The pace unit will be led by young Naveed-ul-Haq and he will be accompanied by the likes of Karim Janat, Hamid Hassan, Gulbadin Naib and Fareed Ahmed.

Recent form:

Afghanistan’s recent form has been impressive to say the least where they’ve managed to win seven matches out of the nine played in the last two years.

The Nabi-led unit’s record while playing in the UAE is second to none where they’ve won 26 matches out of the 33 played with just seven defeats.

Fixtures:

Afghanistan will open their campaign against a qualifying team on October 25 in Sharjah. Their much-awaited encounter against Pakistan will be played in Dubai on October 29 whereas they will play India on November 03 in Abu Dhabi. Afghanistan’s last round-robin fixture is against New Zealand which is scheduled to be organised in Abu Dhabi on November 07.

Players to watch out for

Rashid Khan:

Rashid Khan is being termed by many as the best spinner currently playing in white-ball cricket. The 23-year-old has been phenomenal with the ball in hand ever since making his debut in the T20 internationals back in 2015 where in six out of the last seven years, he averaged less than 20 and had an economy-rate of more than seven just once.

In the UAE, Rashid has an impressive record where he has managed to claim 24 wickets in just 14 matches at an outstanding average of 12.08 along with an economy-rate of just 5.57.

Those numbers are a testament to Rashid’s ability with the ball and if Afghanistan is hoping to go deep in the tournament, their star leg-spinner will need to have a great outing.

Hazratullah Zazai:

Hazratullah Zazai is in the league of his own when it comes to hard-hitting at the top of the order. He showed that during the UAE-leg of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) where he was representing Peshawar Zalmi and played a key role in helping the side in securing their place in the final of the competition.

Zazai is still a little new at the international level but in the domestic T20 competition, he has been phenomenal with the bat where he has managed to score 1,896 runs at an average of 30.09 along with a very healthy strike-rate of 147.89, which included two centuries and 10 half-centuries.

In the T20Is, the 23-year-old has an average of 40.71 and those runs came at an incredible strike-rate of 155.31.

Zazai is the kind of player every team will be scared of and the team management will be hoping for bigger and better things from the left-hander.

Naveen-ul-Haq:

Pace bowling has never been a strong point for Afghanistan over the years but that has changed with the arrival of Naveen-ul-Haq.

The 22-year-old is very highly-rated in the cricketing circles and has already played in different T20 leagues globally.

Naveen is famous for his ability to keep things quiet at the back end of the innings and that will become handy for Afghanistan who already have some top-quality spinners in their lineup.

The right-arm pacer has already represented his national team in eight T20Is where he has managed to claim 13 wickets at an average of just 15 along with an economy-rate of 6.96.

What to expect

Afghanistan is now a well-drilled team in white-ball cricket and can beat any opposition on a given day.

However, with so much turmoil back home and being placed in a group of death alongside the likes of India, Pakistan and New Zealand, the players will have a herculean task to make it to the next round.

Therefore, despite having their best talent at disposal and conditions in favour, Mohammad Nabi’s men are unlikely to make it to the semis.