From poor collective batting failures to potent spin attack, how things shape up for Afghanistan ahead of Asia Cup opener

Dubai [UAE], September 9 (ANI): Afghanistan volition beryllium kickstarting their Asia Cup run arsenic acheronian equine contenders against Hong Kong from Tuesday onwards successful Abu Dhabi, conscionable implicit a twelvemonth aft their historical tally successful the ICC T20 World Cup past year, successful which they made it to the semifinals.

With wins implicit England, Australia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and South Africa successful white-ball cricket, Afghanistan is 1 of the fastest-growing cricket nations successful caller while. Their T20 World Cup tally to the semifinals past year, which included wins implicit heavyweights similar Australia and New Zealand, solidified them arsenic a unit to beryllium reckoned with successful satellite cricket, particularly successful T20Is.

Let america person a look astatine Afghanistan's signifier starring upto the continental lawsuit aft past year's T20 World Cup:

Since past year's T20 World Cup, Afghanistan has featured successful 8 T20Is, winning 5 and losing three. While they secured the bilateral bid against Zimbabwe distant from location successful December past twelvemonth by 2-1, they mislaid their astir caller outing, the tri-nation bid last to Pakistan successful the UAE. They ended the tri-series with 3 wins and 2 losses.

Positives for Afghanistan, mostly successful bowling and game-time successful big region:

-An highly potent rotation onslaught led by Rashid Khan: Led by skipper Rashid Khan, with a young left-arm wrist spinner Noor Ahmed, a 19-year-old right-armer Allah Ghazanfar and a crafty, 40-year-old right-armer Mohammed Nabi, Afghanistan has an highly coagulated rotation attack. If the tracks successful Dubai crook retired to beryllium dilatory and connection turn, they could easy marque a speedy snack retired of their opposition. Despite his caller occasional struggles, Rashid has been successful coagulated signifier successful T20Is starring up to the Asia Cup, with 9 scalps successful 4 matches astatine an mean of 12.77, with an system complaint of 7.18.

This twelvemonth itself successful each of T20s, Rashid has 47 wickets successful 40 matches, though his mean of implicit 24 and an system complaint of 8 suggests that helium is simply a mode much susceptible bowler than before, atleast successful franchise cricket. With 12 wickets successful six matches astatine an mean of 13.66 during The Hundred, Rashid played a important relation successful Oval Invincibles' hat-trick of titles successful UK.

-Game clip successful the UAE: Finishing arsenic finalists successful the tri-nation bid held successful Sharjah, Afghanistan has spent immoderate clip successful the UAE, portion not successful the Asia Cup venues of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. While the conditions whitethorn alteration astatine these 2 venues, Rashid-led squad has enjoyed immoderate occurrence and vantage of already having played successful UAE. As suggested by the apical 5 successful the wicket-takers database being dominated by spinners, conditions successful Sharjah were highly spin-friendly, and this could beryllium the aforesaid successful Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

-Ibrahim Zadran's form: In 5 T20Is since past year, Zadran has featured successful 5 T20Is, scoring 194 runs astatine an mean of 38.80, with a onslaught complaint of 132.87 and 2 half-centuries, with a champion people of 65.

Disadvantages for Afghanistan heading into the tournament:

Poor batting form: Afghanistan's batting is not successful the champion signifier heading into the tournament, with Rahmanullah Gurbaz, their frontline batter, struggling for runs close now, having made conscionable 104 runs successful 8 appearances astatine an mean of 15.50 and a onslaught complaint of 104.20, conscionable aft finishing arsenic top-run-getter successful T20 World Cup with 281 runs successful 8 matches, including 3 fifties.

Their batting mean of 20.96 is third-lowest down Sri Lanka (20.88) and Pakistan (19.84), portion viewed collectively, portion their onslaught complaint of 117.07 is second-lowest, with Oman lagging down with a onslaught complaint of 111.71. Amongst each the Test-playing nations, Afghanistan has the lowest onslaught complaint successful this year's Asia Cup. Also, their batters person conscionable six fifty-plus scores (no centuries) successful 66 innings, the lowest amongst each the participants heading into the tourney since the T20 World Cup 2024.

-Lack of crippled time: Afghanistan has played 8 T20Is heading into the Asia Cup, the slightest among each participants, with adjacent non-Test playing countries similar Oman (15), Hong Kong (27) and UAE (29) having overmuch amended crippled clip and preparation. While the information successful T20 leagues worldwide is decidedly a positive and Afghans signifier a monolithic portion of these competitions, the strength and stakes are not arsenic precocious arsenic this coveted continental affair.

Afghanistan squad for Asia Cup: Rashid Khan (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Darwish Rasooli, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mohammad Ishaq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Allah Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Farid Malik, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi. (ANI)