Rashid Khan in action (Source: AFP Photos)
Rashid Khan will not play for Afghanistan in the forthcoming Test match against India, scheduled to take place in Mullanpur on June 6. The 27-year-old had a back injury before the ODI World Cup 2023, and since then, it has been a concern for him to bowl the longest spells.
In April this year, Rashid hinted at giving up on Test cricket and highlighted the a back injury doesn’t allow him to bowl more deliveries in one go.
“The doctor told me like, 'if you don't want to play cricket, you keep playing the red-ball cricket' because it's not going to support you,” Rashid shared the conversation between him and his doctor not so long ago.
Afghanistan Coach Issues Statement On Rashid Khan's Test Future
Ahead of India vs Afghanistan Test, Rashid Khan and the rest of his national teammates' head coach, Richard Pybus, highlighted the same back concern that Rashid has while having a press conference. However, at the same time, Pybus told the reporters that he would have a conversation with Rashid himself regarding this subject and would try to convince him to play red-ball cricket.
“Rashid has got this long-standing back complaint. He’s got such a huge volume of cricket, you know, he’s got to manage himself,” Pybus said to the reporters.
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“I look forward to having that conversation to see how we can support him, not only just with the opportunity to maybe continue to play some red-ball cricket if there is potential for that, but generally make sure he can play as long and as healthy as possible for Afghanistan,” the Englishman said.
India vs Afghanistan Test Details
In Rashid Khan’s absence, Afghanistan will be led by Hashmatullah Shahidi. The squad also consists of popular names such as Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Azmatullah Omarzai and Rahmat Shah, among others, with the squad ready to assemble against the high-flying Shubman Gill-led side in Mullanpur's scorching heat.
Afghanistan Test squad vs India
Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Abdul Malik, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmanullah Zadran, Afsar Zazai (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Sharafudin Ashraf, Nangyal Kharotai, Qais Ahmad, Bilal Sami, Zia Sharifi, Saleem Safi
When Did Afghanistan Play A Test Match Before?
Afghanistan’s last Test match was against Zimbabwe, and it came in last year from October 20 onwards. There, they suffered a humbling defeat, tasting an innings and 73-run loss.
Batting first, Afghanistan were folded for 127 in the first innings. Zimbabwe, in reply, piled up 359, making the lives of Afghanistan players miserable. To respond, Afghanistan could only manage 159 on the board before losing all 10 wickets.
Since playing their first Test match in 2018, Afghanistan have made appearances in Test cricket on 12 occasions. They have four wins and seven defeats, and one draw, of which only one was against India.
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