AFG T20 WC PREVIEW
Follow UsJonathan Trott, the Head Coach of the Afghanistan Men’s National Cricket Team, made his team’s modus operandi extremely clear while playing the ODI World Cup in 2023. He wanted Afghanistan to take the game deep and stay in it as long as possible.
Afghanistan managed to do that quite well. Their batting order was full of batters who loved to take their time and bat throughout the innings. That was bread and butter for Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah. Their spinners came into the game later, like they always do, and helped them have their best-ever World Cup performance.
But this is not 50-overs cricket.
Afghanistan has an abysmal record at T20 World Cups. Despite being a side full of talented cricketers, they have won only one game out of the 15 they played against top 10 ranked teams. However, this time in 2024, as the World Cup moves to the West Indies and the United States of America (USA), they are placed nicely to upend that record.
The selection has been much better. The Afghan spinners have always been their ace card, and largely, their anchor-heavy batting has let them down.
That’s where you see improvements, as Afghanistan have decent hitters in their batting lineup, including the likes of Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, and Mohammad Nabi in their lineup. Meanwhile, captain Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman are proper tonkers of the ball as well down the order.
Apart from that, the location of their group stage games might give them hope of Super Eight qualification. Afghanistan, part of Group C, will play all its games in the Windies (Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, and Saint Lucia), which will help its spinners. Skipper Rashid, Nabi, Noor Ahmad, and Mujeeb are almost sure to be in the first eleven.
With West Indies and New Zealand being the strongest teams in terms of ranking in their group, Afghanistan can totally expect to beat either of them and confirm a spot in the next stage of the competition.
What can win them the trophy?
Spin for the win
Rashid Khan. Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Noor Ahmad. Mohammad Nabi.
Look around any T20 league in the world, and there’s a chance that any one or probably all four of these spinners would be there in the wicket-takers list, bowling miserly spells for their sides and flummoxing batters who haven’t faced this quality of spin at that level.
The sheer variety in this quartet that is almost sure to play in Afghanistan’s first tournament game is immense. A left-arm wrist spinner, an orthodox off-spinner, a right-arm wrist spinner and an off-break bowler who drifts the ball. Moreover, they also have Nangeyalia Kharote, a left-arm orthodox, in their squad who has taken five wickets in the three T20Is he has played for Afghanistan.
If you compare the Afghan spinners’ performance with other top spin nations, you’ll see that not only they have the best economy since 2021 T20 World Cup, they are also amongst wickets. In the shortest format of the game after all, it’s this ability to contain runs that brings you wickets.
Afghanistan’s success and their qualification to the Super Eights would once again rely on their spinners who have held the Afghan flag high and mighty ever since they entered international cricket.
What can eliminate them?
Their slow batting
Amongst all teams since 2021 T20 World Cup, Afghanistan batters have the lowest combined strike rate - just 121.5. That tells a very straightforward story of their failure at the biggest stage.
Major improvements were required there, and the current squad seems a much better hitting team than their earlier iterations. While Ibrahim Zadran and Azmatullah are still very much anchor batters (T20I strike rates of 107.23 and 113.83, respectively), batters around them are known for their hitting.
Gurbaz has travelled around the world in T20 leagues and is known for his quick starts. Najibullah Zadran’s six-hitting is one of the most underrated things to watch out for on the Afghan side, and his team relies on him for some biggies. Meanwhile, the likes of Gulbadin and Rashid are enterprising batters who change the game's complexion in a few deliveries.
However, everything would depend on the right entry point for these batters, and it’s a fine balance to strike. For their own good, Afghanistan would hope that Trott and Rashid don’t miss a trick there.
Things to watch out for
Entry point of Azmatullah Omarzai and Najibullah Zadran in the batting order
Naveen Ul Haq and Fazalhaq Farooqi’s pace bowling form
Gurbaz’s ability to give more than just quick starts to Afghanistan
Tactical MVP
The Muscle Man’s might
Gulbadin Naib is a showman. And showmen wait for the biggest occasions to prove their real worth and value.
With an overall T20 strike rate of 131.4, he was always a big hitter of the ball. However he has upped his game quite a bit in the last few years, and is striking at 159.03 in the five T20Is he has played for Afghanistan this year, which includes two quick fifties against India in January.
Add to this the fact that he has a T20I career bowling economy of 8.19, his wily slow medium pace can be more than useful in the Carribean as he can sneak in a few quiet overs in the middle overs by enticing batters to go against him.
He’s a proper package, and I’m not just talking about his cricket here.
Probable first-choice XI
The first eleven should be very straightforward for Afghanistan. Gurbaz and Ibrahim have been their best openers. The question however is who bats at three. Gulbadin, Najib, and Azmatullah are probable candidates for that role, and Trott and his team can take a call on that depending on the game situation.
Nabi, Rashid, Mujeeb and Noor will be the spinners and Naveen and Farooqi will be their specialist pacers, along with Azmatullah and Gulbadin who are more than decent with the ball in the hand.
Probable XI: Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Gulbadin Naib, Najibullah Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Group Games Schedule
Afghanistan vs Uganda, June 4, Guyana
Afghanistan vs New Zealand, June 8, Guyana
Afghanistan vs Papua New Guinea, June 14, Trinidad
Afghanistan vs West Indies, June 18, St. Lucia
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