ICC is thinking about bringing in new prospects keeping into account the new uprisings in the world of cricket. Among the topics up for discussion in front of the board, would be the structure of Test cricket, and whether the five-day format should be opened up to more than the current ten Test sides.
Afghanistan and Ireland have exceptionally made it enough to travel the distance to knock on the doors. Following their rapid rise in ODI and T20 cricket, Afghanistan is likely to be granted a Test status by the ICC very soon.
Fellow associates Ireland too are in line to play Test cricket. Both of them were recently involved in the ICC’s Intercontinental Cup which Afghanistan won by 3-2 in an intensely competitive series held in India.
Prospects for such a development have become brighter in recent times. Ireland’s inter-provincial competition was awarded first-class and List A status in October 2016. Afghanistan’s application to have the first-class status granted to their multi-day domestic competition, meanwhile, is due to be examined at the Chief Executives Committee meeting on Thursday.
“England and a few other boards wanted Ireland to attain Test status before Afghanistan, but the Asian countries are strongly supporting Afghanistan. There is a possibility of both teams getting a chance to play Test cricket. The decision will be taken at the ICC’s next meeting,” a source told.
Afghanistan recently spoke about their desire of achieving Full Member status. Their premier national competition has five teams compared to Ireland’s three-team elite structure. As such, Afghanistan’s administrators are confident that at the very least their domestic competition will be awarded the same first-class status as that of Ireland’s, and perhaps more.
India is currently at the top of the ICC Test rankings with 122 points. Afghanistan is ranked number 10 in the ICC’s ODI ranking with 52 points. They are ahead of Test nation Zimbabwe, who are closely behind at the 11th spot with 48 points followed by Ireland, who have 42 points.
Interestingly, Afghanistan has played Zimbabwe 19 times in ODI cricket and have been victorious 11 times. Such performances against a Test nation definitely call for the Test status accreditation. Atif Mashal, chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board has something to say on the matter too.
“We’ve submitted a proposal for Test status and in February they will decide about it. We had a very positive meeting with ICC. They were very happy for Afghanistan cricket, the development and sustainability of the cricket, the introduction of youngsters to our team. Now we have many new names in the team and they are performing very well. Introducing new boys to the team is a plus thing because it is becoming a young, sustainable and well-performing team. We have already reserved a place for Full Membership and after the criteria is passed by the full [ICC] board and executive committee, we are ready for Full Membership.”
Results at international level will also matter. At each of the previous three 50-over World Cups, Ireland has notched wins over full members while Afghanistan added the scalp of West Indies at the 2016 World T20 to their stretch of dominance over Zimbabwe.
Both countries are already part of the 12-team ODI qualification table. Since entering the competition in 2009, Afghanistan has won 14 games, lost once – to Ireland in 2013 world cup final – and recorded four draws, including in their first-class debut match against a Zimbabwe Xi in 2011.
They beat Scotland in 2010 final to claim the title in their first appearance at the tournament, and in the current tournament table, they are at second place behind Ireland.
On the other hand, Ireland won three I-Cup titles from 2005 to 2008. They won again in 2013 by beating Afghanistan in the finals and could have won more titles had the format not been rejigged to stretch out seven group matches over three years.
Overall, since 2004, they have won 24 matches and drawn ten while losing only two. One of those losses was to Scotland in the first year of the competition, the other to Afghanistan in 2009.
In the recently concluded Intercontinental cup, Afghanistan had a commendable performance against Ireland. The Afghanistan Chief Coach: Lalchand Rajput, who was the Team manager when Indian triumphed in the 2007 World T20, was of the opinion that seeing his team’s performances in the recent past across formats; the ICC must give them an opportunity in the longest format of the game.
“The results are there for all to see. We have been consistent in overcoming our opponents in all three formats — T20s, ODIs and the longer version. Seeing this kind of performance, the ICC should give us an opportunity to play Test cricket. If the ICC grants Test status to Ireland as well, it will be a welcome move,” Rajput said.
Two of Afghanistan’s top players: Mohammed Nabi and Rashid Khan are busy playing in the IPL which underlines the growth the country’s cricketers have achieved in their short international careers. Rashid Khan has been the top buy of any uncapped player in IPL, whereas other reputed bowlers like Imran Tahir and Irfan Pathan remained unsold.
However, the team is scheduled to tour the West Indies in May as they play three ODI’s and as many T20’s against the world T20 champions. All eyes will be on this series, as Afghanistan are more than capable of giving the West Indies a run for their money.
Afghanistan will also feature in a 50-over game at Lord’s in July, as they play against the Brendon McCullum-led MCC team. A game of cricket at Lord’s is a dream come true for any cricketer.
“To play at Lord’s is a big dream for every cricketer. The boys will be motivated to play and the match will be a good confidence- booster for Afghanistan. It will also be a huge achievement for me to coach a national team at the Mecca of cricket. However, we need to play good cricket and make use of this platform as an opportunity to showcase our talent,” said Rajput
Well, All we can say is definitely new horizons in the world of cricket are on way to be explored and hope these teams give a tough competition to the ones before on the list .