Afghanistan boosted by return of star captain as Shahzad is recalled
Afghanistan will be buoyed by return of Rashid Khan into the T20I side who was rested from the one-off Test against Bangladesh with an eye on his long term fitness. The Tigers went on to win that contest by a record margin of 546 runs.
In other news, wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Shahzad has been thrown a lifeline, re-entering the squad after an absence of almost two years. Seemingly out of favour since the T20 World Cup in 2021, his selection comes after a strong recent run in domestic cricket.
Shahzad joins Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Hazratullah Zazai in a group of hard-hitting top order players, with the two-match series running from July 14 to 16. The teams also play three ODIs from July 5 to 11, with Rashid also set to feature following his break.
The squad is close if not full strength, with Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman also set to feature. There was no room for the likes of Afsar Zazai and Gulbadin Naib.
**Afghanistan Squad for T20Is:**Rashid Khan (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad, Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Sediq Atal, Karim Janat, Azmatullah Omarzai, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Wafadar Momand, Farid Ahmad Malik, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
ODI and T20I series schedule*:
5 July, First ODI, Chattogram
8 July, Second ODI, Chattogram
11 July, Third ODI, Chattogram
14 July, First T20I, Sylhet
16 July, Second T20I, Sylhet
*All encounters are Day-Night games