Nabi to captain national side against Scotland

KABUL): The cricket board on Sunday announced an 18-man squad led by newly-appointed captain Mohammad Nabi for the ICC Intercontinental Cup, beginning next month in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

The team would play matches against Scotland in the sixth edition of the ICC Intercontinental Cup, an international first-class tournament between leading associate members. The format was changed after the 2009-10 event.

The previous two-division system has been replaced by a single eight-team division, comprising six squads from the 2010 ICC World, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands, and Scotland).

Under the new system, the top two teams from 2011 ICC World Cricket League Division Two were Namibia and the UAE.

Afghanistan Cricket Board Chief Executive Dr. Noor Mohammad told Pajhwok Afghan News at the Kabul International Stadium that some changes had been brought to the team, as Nabi had been appointed as skipper and Shehzad Mohammadi as vice-captain.

He said the changes were aimed at giving the young talent more responsibility and that former caption Nawroz Mangal had been taken on board over the appointments. He paid tributes to Mangal for his leadership skills that helped promote cricket in the country.

The team is: Mohammad Nabi (captain), Shahzad Mohammadi (vice-captain), Karim Sadiq, Nawroz Mangal, Javed Ahmadi, Mohibullah Oryakhel, Samiullah Shinwari, Gulbadin Naib, Hamza Hotak, Daulat Zadran, Izatullah Daulatzai, Aftab Alam, Mirwais Ashraf, Afsar Zazai, Shabir Noori, Shahpur Zadran, Hamid Hassan and Asghar Stanikzai.

Under the round-robin format, matches between teams from Division One have full One-Day international status, while matches featuring one or both of the Division Two teams have List A status.

The top two teams will qualify for the 2015 Cricket World Cup, with the remaining six entering a further a qualifying tournament to decide the final two places.

Afghanistan failed to qualify for the 2011 World Cup, but did earn ODI status in 2013. In February 2010, they qualified for the 2010 ICC World Twenty20, the team’s first major tournament. The same year, they won their first Intercontinental Cup, beating Scotland in the final.

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