Gulbadin Naib to lead as Afghanistan announce men's cricket team squad for Hangzhou Asian Games 2023

Afghanistan have named their 15-member squad for Men's cricket event at the Hangzhou Asian Games.

The Selection Committee of the Afghanistan Cricket Board has announced a 15-member Men's cricket team squad for the Asian Games 2023. The competition is scheduled to take place from September 27 to October 7 in Hangzhou, China.

The experienced all-rounder Gulbadin Naib has been appointed as the captain of the Afghanistan squad. This team includes notable players such as Mohammad Shahzad, Karim Jannat, Sediqullah Atal, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Qais Ahmad, and Afsar Zazai, all of whom have previously represented Afghanistan in international cricket.

The team also comprises players such as Noor Ali Zadran, Zubaid Akbari, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Sayed Ahmad Shirzad, and Shahidullah Kamal, who had notable appearances in the ACC Men's Emerging Asia Cup 2023 held in Sri Lanka.

Furthermore, the Afghanistan team features Wafiullah Tarakhil, a promising middle-order batsman hailing from Afghanistan's U19 squad. He was a member of the Afghanistan Future Stars squad that participated in the Afghanistan Home Tri-Series against Bangladesh U19 and Sri Lanka U19 in Abu Dhabi during March and April earlier this year.

According to the tournament regulations, Afghanistan are set to participate in the competition starting from the quarter-finals stage. These quarter-finals are slated for October 3-4, with the semi-finals following on October 6. The Gold Medal match will then be held on October 7. Additionally, there will be a third-place play-off match for the Bronze Medal, also taking place on October 7.

Afghanistan squad for the Asian Games men’s cricket

Gulbadin Naib (c), Mohammad Shahzad (vc, wk), Sediqullah Atal, Zubdaid Akbari, Noor Ali Zadran, Shahidullah Kamal, Afsar Zazai, Wafiullah Tarakhil, Karim Jannat, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Nijat Masoud, Sayed Ahmad Shirzad, Qais Ahmad and Zahir Khan.

Reserves: Allah Noor Nasiri, Mohammad Ibrahim, Nangyal Kharotai

Asian Games men’s cricket competition schedule

October 3 – 4: Quarter Finals

October 6: Semi-Finals 

October 7: Final