Qais Ahmad recalled as Afghanistan announce T20 World Cup squad

Mohammad Nabi to lead the side [PC: Twitter]

In a remarkable turn of events, Afghanistan have announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia. 

Spinner Qais Ahmad has found a place, while Darwish Rasooli, Salim Saifi, Azmat Omarzai have received their maiden World Cup call-up. 

Veteran all-rounder Mohammad Nabi continues to captain the side despite his mediocre returns in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2022. Swashbuckling middle-order batter Najibullah Zadran has been chosen as his deputy. 

Former captain Gulbadin Naib, who played the last T20 World Cup in UAE, has made it into the list of standby players alongside Rahmat Shah, Afsar Zazai and Sharafudin Ashraf. Samiullah Shinwari, who was surprisingly recalled into the Asia Cup squad, has been excluded from the World Cup team. 

In another notable event, all-rounder Karim Janat has been sidelined from the team following his disastrous Asia Cup 2022 campaign. 

On the expected lines, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Fareed Ahmad Malik have been picked as the frontline seamers, while the legendary tweaker Rashid Khan is set to shoulder spin bowling responsibilities alongside Mujeeb Ur Rahman. 

Afghanistan squad for the T20 World Cup 2022

Mohammad Nabi (c), Najibullah Zadran (VC), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Azmat Omarzai, Darwish Rasooli, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Hazratullah Zazai, Ibrahim Zadran, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen ul Haq, Qais Ahmad, Rashid Khan, Salim Saifi, Usman Ghani

Standby Players: Afsar Zazai, Sharafudin Ashraf, Rahmat Shah, Gulbadin Naib

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