Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Friday removed Asghar Afghan as the captain across all three formats of the game. Rashid Khan has been named as the new T20I captain of Afghanistan, while Gulbadin Naib and Rahmat Shah will take over the captaincy roles in ODI and Test cricket respectively.
Asghar was appointed as Afghanistan’s team captain in April 2015. He then took over the leadership role from all-rounder Mohammad Nabi.
Under Asghar, Afghanistan won their first ever Test match, when they beat Ireland in March this year. The right-handed batsman also led the side in 37 T20 internationals and 33 ODI wins, including a successful ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2018 campaign, where Afghanistan beat West Indies in the final.
Following ACB’s decision, Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi, who are currently in India for the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL), took to Twitter to criticise the decision of removing Asghar Afghan from the helm.
“Being a senior member of the side & having seen the rise of Afghanistan cricket @ashrafghani I don’t think it’s the right time to change the captain before the WC @afgexecutive The team has gelled really well under #Asghar & personally feel he is the right man to lead us @hmohib,” wrote Nabi.
Being a senior member of the side & having seen the rise of Afghanistan cricket @ashrafghani I don’t think it’s the right time to change the captain before the WC @afgexecutive The team has gelled really well under #Asghar & personally feel he is the right man to lead us @hmohib
— Mohammad Nabi (@MohammadNabi007) April 5, 2019
Rashid, on the other hand, clearly said that he ‘strongly’ disagrees with the decision to replace Asghar, calling it biased and irresponsible. He also opined that Asghar should remain the captain keeping in mind the World Cup,
“With all the respect to the Selection Committee, I strongly disagree with the decision as it is irresponsible & bias. As we have @cricketworldcup in front of us, Captain #MAsgharAfghan should remain as our team Captain. His captaincy is highly instrumental for team success,” wrote Rashid.
With all the respect to the Selection Committee, I strongly disagree with the decision as it is irresponsible & bias. As we have @cricketworldcup in front of us, Captain #MAsgharAfghan should remain as our team Captain. His captaincy is highly instrumental for team success .(1/2)
— Rashid Khan (@rashidkhan_19) April 5, 2019
“With just months to go for such a mega event like World Cup, changing the captain will cause uncertainty and also team morale will be affected. @ashrafghani @afgexecutive @hmohib,” he added.
With just months to go for such a mega event like World Cup, changing the captain will cause uncertainty and also team morale will be affected. @ashrafghani @afgexecutive @hmohib( 2/2)
— Rashid Khan (@rashidkhan_19) April 5, 2019
The Afghan side will next travel to Scotland and Ireland in May and face the hosts in two ODIs each before taking on Pakistan and England in one-off ODIs ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup, where they will face Australia in their first game on June 1.
