Spinner AM Ghazanfar has been included in Afghanistan’s squad for the upcoming Test series against Zimbabwe starting in Bulawayo on Thursday. This development comes after reports that Rashid Khan would not be available for the Boxing Day game due to personal reasons.
“AM Ghazanfar has been included in Afghanistan’s squad for the two-match Test series against Zimbabwe, with the first match starting tomorrow in Bulawayo,” the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said in a statement on Wednesday.
🚨 SQUAD UPDATE!
AM Ghazanfar has been added to Afghanistan’s squad for the two-match test series against Zimbabwe, with the first one being scheduled to begin tomorrow in Bulawayo.#AfghanAtalan , #ZIMvAFG , #GloriousNationVictoriousTeam pic.twitter.com/fR5KRHqeSS
— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) December 25, 2024
Ghazanfar has been included in the Test squad for the first time after he took impressive figures of 5/33 in the third ODI at Harare Sports Club, helping Afghanistan secure an eight-wicket win and a 2-0 series lead. Interestingly, Ghazanfar has not played any first-class match yet in his cricket career.
2024 has been a fantastic year for Ghazanfar, who started playing for Afghanistan at the Under-19 Men’s World Cup in South Africa, where he took eight wickets in four matches at an economy rate of 3.35, and then made his senior debut against Ireland in March. Made his ODI debut.
He then helped Afghanistan A win their first ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup title in 2024, winning the Player of the Match award in the final against Sri Lanka A in Oman. Let us tell you, Ghazanfar was bought by Mumbai Indians for Rs 4.80 crore in the players auction held for IPL 2025. During the auction, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) also bid on the mystery bowler, but Mumbai made him a part of their team.
The first match of the series against Afghanistan will be played at the Queen’s Sports Club, marking the first time that Zimbabwe will host its first Boxing Day Test at home in 28 years. After this, Zimbabwe will host its first New Year’s Test, which is scheduled for January 2-6, 2025.
Afghanistan’s updated Test squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Rahmat Shah, Ikram Alikhail, Afsar Zazai, Riaz Hasan, Sediqullah Atal, Abdul Malik, Baheer Shah Mehboob, Ismat Alam, Azmatullah Umarzai, Zaheer Khan, Zia ur Rehman Akbar, Zaheer Shahzad. , Yamin Ahmadzai, Bashir Ahmed Afghan, Navid Zadran, Farid Ahmed Malik and AM Ghazanfar.
Also read: IND vs AUS 4th Test: “A few years ago…” Pat Cummins said a big thing about Rohit Sharma’s poor form.
