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Skippers unveil trophy for maiden Test match between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka

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Sri Lanka and Afghanistan skippers, Dhananjaya de Silva and Hashmatullah Shahidi respectively, on Thursday unveiled the trophy for the maiden Test match between the two nations at the Independence Square in Colombo.

The Test, which gets underway on Friday, will be Afghanistan’s 8th red ball match since gaining test status in 2017.

Senior Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan will miss the one-off event as he continues to recover from back surgery. Qais Ahmed, whose only Test came five years ago, has been named in the squad in place of Rashid.

There are also four uncapped players in the squad - Noor Ali Zadran, Zia-ur-Rehman, Mohammad Ishaq and Naveed Zadran.

Noor Ali, who is related to Mujeeb ur Rahman and Ibrahim Zadran, is the most experienced of the four with 74 international caps to his name in ODIs and T20Is.

The 35-year-old is yet to make his Test debut. He, however, made his ODI debut as early as 2009, in Afghanistan's first ever ODI.

Afghanistan's last Test came in June 2023, when the team lost to Bangladesh by a huge margin.

The tour of Sri Lanka also includes three ODIs and as many T20Is, which follow the one-off Test.

Sri Lanka meanwhile hope to revive their flagging test fortunes with new five-day captain Dhananjaya de Silva taking the helm for the Test.

The island nation is ranked in 8th place on the ICC’s Men’s Test Team Rankings, while Afghanistan is ranked 11th.

Sri Lank’s last match in October last year saw a humiliating innings and 222-run loss to Pakistan in their worst ever home defeat.

Three uncapped players are among Sri Lanka's 16-member squad.

Afghanistan Cricket Board chair, Mirwais Ashraf, meanwhile said last month that the board and team “are committed to strengthening our red-ball cricket and building a formidable test side as well."

Test squads

Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Noor Ali Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Bahir Shah, Nasir Jamal, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Ishaq (wk), Qais Ahmad, Zia-ur-Rehman, Zahir Khan, Yamin Ahmadzai, Nijat Masood, Mohammad Saleem, Naveed Zadran.

Sri Lanka: Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Kusal Mendis, Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ramesh Mendis, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Lahiru Udara, Chamika Gunasekara, Milan Rathnayake.

Stay Tuned to Ariana Television!

Fans will be pleased to know that this exciting tour will be screened live and exclusively in Afghanistan on Ariana Television.

First up is the Test which is scheduled from Friday, February 2 to 6.

The match will start at 9am Kabul time but a pre-match broadcast starts at 8am on Friday.

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Afghanistan clinches ODI series victory against Zimbabwe

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Afghanistan's national cricket team triumphed over Zimbabwe by 8 wickets in the third and final One-Day International (ODI) to claim the series victory.

In a dominant bowling display, Afghanistan dismissed Zimbabwe for just 127 runs in 30.1 overs. The Afghan batsmen then chased down the target comfortably in 26.5 overs, losing only 2 wickets along the way.

The standout performer of the match was Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, who took a remarkable 5 wickets, while Rashid Khan supported with 3 wickets. Azmatullah Omarzai and Farid Ahmad each claimed 1 wicket.

The first match of the series was abandoned due to rain, but Afghanistan bounced back strongly in the second match, securing a commanding 232-run victory.

This series win follows Afghanistan's earlier success in the T20I series against Zimbabwe, further cementing their dominance in international cricket.

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Bangla Tigers lift Lanka T10 Super League title

Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.

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Hambantota Bangla Tigers beat favorites Jaffna Titans by 26 runs in Thursday’s Lanka T10 Super League final at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy.

The Tigers produced a fine all-round performance to beat the Titans, who had won all their matches in the lead up to the final.

Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.

Hambantota Bangla Tigers, put into bat first, posted 133 for seven from their allotted 10 overs through some useful contributions from their top order batsmen.

The openers Mohammad Shahzad and Kusal Perera added 35 runs from 2.4 overs before they suffered a middle order collapse and reached 59 for three at the halfway stage of the innings.

However, skipper Dasun Shanaka and Shevon Daniel revived the innings with a fourth-wicket partnership of 44 runs in three overs.

Shanaka made 21 with two sixes and two boundaries while Daniel struck 26 with one six and three boundaries before Kennar Lewis and Dhananjaya Lakshan added the finishing touches.

Chasing 133 runs for victory, Jaffna Titans lost wickets at regular intervals and they eventually finished at 107 for six despite a fighting unbeaten half century from middle order batsman Tom Abell.
Richard Gleeson wrecked the Hambantota Bangla Tigers’ innings with excellent figures of three wickets for 21 while Shanaka captured two wickets for four runs.

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Afghanistan crush Zimbabwe by 232 runs in second ODI

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Afghanistan defeated Zimbabwe by 232 runs in the second ODI on Thursday to secure a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Sent to bat first by Zimbabwe who won the toss, Afghanistan posted 286-6 in Harare.

Sediqullah Atal scored 104, his first hundred in an international match. Abdul Malik followed with 84.

In reply, Zimbabwe scored 54 runs before being bowled out in the 17.5 overs.

Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar and Naweed Zadran took three wickets each. Fazlullah Farooqi picked up two wickets and Azmatullah Omarzai one.

This was the second match of the ODI series between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe. The first was abandoned due to rain.

The third and final game of the series will be played on Saturday.

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