Asghar Afghan Sacked as Afghanistan Skipper Across Formats, Gulbadin Naib to Lead in World Cup
Apr 30, 2019 at 4:55 PM
Afghanistan Cricket Board has removed Asghar Afghan as the Afghanistan skipper across all formats on Friday as they opted for the split captaincy in all 3 formats. Gulbadin Naib will take up the ODI responsibility while Rashid Khan and Rahmat will lead the side in T20I’s and Tests respectively. Meanwhile, Afghanistan also named Rashid Khan, Shafiquallah Shafiq and Hashmatullah Shahidi as the deputy for ODI’s, T20I’s and Tests respectively.
After the decision made by Afghanistan Cricket Board, Gulbadin has to lead the side straight away in the World Cup without any captaincy experience. Only time will tell whether it is a sensible move or not but Gulbadin Naib won’t mind. Leading your country in a World Cup is something special and Naib will hope to cherish every bit of the moment.
Asghar Afghan who was previously known as Asghar Stanikzai was appointed the Afghanistan skipper back in April 2015. Under his captaincy, Afghanistan has a pretty impressive record so it is indeed a harsh and a strange decision especially given the timing of the call. Afghanistan won 31 ODI’s and 37 T20I’s in 46 matches under his leadership.
It was under Asghar Afghan’s captaincy that Afghanistan won their maiden Test match against Ireland not long ago. He has been a regular feature in the Afghanistan side since 2009 and is expected to play a role even after getting sacked as a skipper. He has scored 2013 and 1056 runs in ODI’s and T20I’s respectively.
The captaincy given to Rashid Khan might only improve his all-round skills and make him more motivated. He is a sensational all-round player and will be one of the youngest to lead his country in international cricket. On the other hand, Rahmat Shah will be also eager to lead his side in the longest format of the game.
The idea behind the split captaincy might be a good option but might backfire as well. Hence only time will tell whether it will be a sensible option just before the 2019 World Cup to sack a skipper and give the job to someone who hasn’t been at the helm before.