Sport

Afghanistan to ‘sort out’ batting, fielding lineup ahead of first World Cup match

Published

3 years ago

October 20, 2021

(Last Updated On: )

Afghanistan is set to face West Indies in its 2nd warmup match prior to the start of their first match in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 on October 25.

The warm up match is set to be played in ICCA Oval 1, Dubai on Wednesday evening.

Afghanistan lost its first warmup match to South Africa as they were reduced to only 104/8 in their 20 overs and lost the match by 41 runs. Although Afghanistan’s bowling attack started well, with Nabi and Mujeeb turning things around, the South African batsmen targeted Afghanistan’s bowlers which caused to them to lose at least 30 runs.

The batters were also restricted and felt the heat as the South Africans ended up controlling the match.

The Afghan team has high hopes of defeating the Windies on Wednesday in what they hope will be a confidence booster before embarking on their official journey at the World Cup.

Afghanistan will look to strengthen their batting by sorting out the batting order. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mohammad Shahzad and Hazratullah Zazai are the men who have had some impressive performances over the last two years for the national team and in franchise cricket.

If Afghanistan are to prove on their batting, they will need two of these batters to do well and at least one other batter to support them.

A middle order which includes captain Mohammad Nabi, Najeebullah Zadran and Asghar Afghan will also try to post a big score.

In the bowling department, Mohammad Nabi will look to bowl Rashid Khan Wednesday to observe where and how to utilize him at the main event; while Rashid will need to assess the conditions and prepare himself for the next event.

Hamid Hassan however did not complete his full quota and injured his finger, but will be looking to bowl some overs and mark his presence before their first official match.

Mohammad Nabi will also be looking to test the medium pace of Karim Jannat in the middle overs as an additional seam bowling option in the line-up, while Fareed or Gulbadin Naib will also be kept in check to test their medium fast bowling abilities before going to the first match against B1 on Oct 25.
Said Rahman Ahmadzai, fielding coach of the National U19 team said Wednesday that the warm up match was important and must be considered as the final opportunity to select the best XI for the first match.

“The batters focused on big hitting in the first inning (against South African) which was not right” said Ahmadzai.

He added: “The mistakes that we made in the first match must not be repeated, good batting, bowling and fielding must be done which is very important for the team’s performance”.

Ahmadzai also pointed out that the spin bowling attack approach could prove beneficial in these conditions.

“UAE pitches are spin bowling friendly; the ball is not coming good on the bat and sometimes the wickets make it difficult for the batsmen to read the ball well”.

He also added that around 150 runs are a defendable score in these conditions but while bowling first, the team must restrict the opposition to around 130 runs to be able to chase the target down.

Afghanistan defeated West Indies 2-1 in a 3-match T20I series in Lucknow two years ago and will be mentally ready going into this match.

Related Topics:Cricket featured ICC peace T20

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AFC Beach Soccer: UAE thrash Afghanistan 7-1 in opener

Published

2 days ago

March 21, 2025

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: )

Afghanistan’s national beach soccer team lost 7-1 to the United Arab Emirates in Friday’s opening match at the AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup 2025 in Thailand.

Afghanistan will face Iran in their second group-stage match next Sunday.

In this year’s tournament, the Afghan team is placed in Group C alongside Iran, UAE, and Indonesia.

Sport

IPL 2025 celebrates 18 years of immense success

Published

5 days ago

March 18, 2025

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: )

With just four days to go until the opening match of this year’s IPL, cricket fever is already taking hold and for fans across Afghanistan, Ariana Radio and Television Network (ATN) will once again bring this thrilling event into the homes of Afghans in the country.

This year’s IPL is in fact the 18th season and has undoubtedly become a firm favorite on the world’s annual cricket schedule.

The popularity of the IPL is so immense that the cumulative brand value was estimated at $12 billion in 2024, a 13% increase from $10.7 billion in 2023, according to the 17th Brand Finance IPL 2024 valuation report.

According to Brand Finance, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) leads as the most valuable IPL franchise in 2024, with a brand valuation of $122 million.

This 52% growth is attributed largely to the enduring legacy of their former captain MS Dhoni.

CSK is followed by Mumbai Indians, which is valued at $119 million and
Royal Challengers Bengaluru is worth $117 million.

Defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders is at $109 million; Sunrisers Hyderabad is $85 million; Rajasthan Royals is $81 million and Delhi Capitals is $80 million.

Saturday’s opener will see KKR take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Kolkata.

IPL 2025 gets underway on Saturday, March 22, and runs for two months, ending on May 25.

IPL fans can tune in to Ariana Television from 6:15pm for a pre-match show on Saturday. The KKRvsRCB match will start at 6:30pm

For more news and updates follow us on social media and watch this space.

Sport

Cricket Ireland cancels Afghanistan series for ‘financial reasons’

However, in the same statement Cricket Ireland confirmed a line up of action-packed cricket this summer.

Published

2 weeks ago

March 12, 2025

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: )

Ireland’s cricket board announced this week they have cancelled a multi-format series against Afghanistan scheduled for later this year.

Cricket Ireland said in a statement issued on Tuesday that they were cancelling the series due to “financial reasons”.

“One planned series that won’t go ahead for financial reasons is against Afghanistan.

“This decision is part of our management of short-term budgetary constraints, as well as our requirement to comply with the Board’s mandate to deliver balanced investment across the organisation’s strategic objectives,” said Warren Deutrom, Chief Executive of Cricket Ireland.

However, in the same statement Cricket Ireland confirmed a line up of action-packed cricket this summer.

West Indies will play six limited-overs matches in Ireland in May and June before England arrive in September for a three-match Twenty20 series.

In addition, Zimbabwe Women and Pakistan Women will tour Ireland in July and August respectively; and Ireland Women will compete in two ICC World Cup qualifier tournaments.

In addition to this, Ireland Wolves will head to the UAE to play Sri Lanka A and Afghanistan A as part of a multi-format tour.

Cricket Ireland added that “further fixtures and tours in 2025 will be announced in due course”.
Deutrom meanwhile said Cricket Ireland will also invest to upgrade infrastructure and facilities across the country.

The Irish government announced last August it would build a stadium at the national sports campus in Blanchardstown, which will also stage matches of the T20 World Cup in 2030, which Ireland will co-host with England and Scotland.

“All in all, on and off the pitch, in time this will be recognised as one of the more consequential years in Irish cricket history,” Deutrom added.

In response to this news, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has clarified that the matches have not been canceled and that efforts are underway to reschedule them at a more suitable time.