Afghanistan major player Rashid Khan will miss the three-match T20I series against India because of a back issue.
The gifted leg-spinner is now recovering from a lower-back surgery, which kept him out of the Big Bash League (BBL) and SA20.
Afghanistan’s captain, Ibrahim Zadran, asserts that although Rashid went to Chandigarh with the team, he is still not prepared for combat.
“He is traveling with the team, but he is not entirely fit,” Ibrahim said. “Hopefully, he heals from his wounds as quickly as we expect. As he works with the doctor on his recovery, we shall miss him throughout the entire series.
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“Without Rashid, we will struggle, but not that much because his experience is very important for all of us. But this is cricket, and you should be ready for any kind of situation.”
Rashid was not present when Afghanistan recently won a Twenty20 international series against the United Arab Emirates. He hasn’t played since the ODI World Cup in October and November of last year.
The team will rely on Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mohammad Nabi, Noor Ahmad, Qais Ahmad, and Sharafuddin Ashraf to help with their spin bowling efforts in Rashid’s absence.
In the UAE series, Qais had the greatest economy rate (6.70) and average (11.16) of any player who claimed six wickets.
Ibrahim’s goal is to play India in a competitive series.
“Playing against India on their home soil is a difficult task, but we came here to play well against them and show our skills,” he said. Our boys are playing amazing cricket, and we have a lot of excellent T20 players, so I’m sure they’ll do well. “We’ll play a great series against India.”
The three-match T20I series will get off in Mohali on Thursday. The last two games are slated to take place in Bangalore and Indore on January 14 and 17.
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