Asghar Stanikzai Feels Afghanistan Have ‘Better Spinners’ Than India
Jun 9, 2018 at 7:23 PM
Afghanistan is all set to appear in their first-ever Test match against India, The iconic Test is slated to begin from June 14. The skipper of the team, Asghar Stanikzai is all pumped up for their historic moment and is hopeful of putting up a good show against a number one ranked team.
Of late, the Afghanistan spinners have been quite exceptional in the limited-overs fold. They have bamboozled world-class batsmen and have made them dance to their tunes.
The likes of Rashid Khan, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman and Mohammad Nabi eventually grabbed the eyeballs with their impressive showing.
After a great season with the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Rashid carried on a rich vein of form and bagged eight wickets in the three-match Twenty20 International series against Bangladesh in Dehradun.
It was courtesy of his brilliant bowling that Afghanistan managed to drub Bangladesh by a 3-0 margin.
The Afghan spinners have bamboozled the best in the business including the likes of Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Hence, the skipper of the visiting side is of the opinion that they have better set of spinners than hosts India. However, it is too early to comment especially given the fact that the Indian spinners have been quite brilliant in home conditions.
Also Read: FIFA World Cup 2018 Official Song Released
“The whole world knows that [we have very good spinners in] Rashid Khan, Mujeeb [Ur Rahman], [Mohammad] Nabi, Rahmat [Shah], Zahir [Khan]. In Afghanistan, the brilliant thing is that a lot of the young talent that is coming through is spinners because they all follow Rashid, they follow Nabi, so because of that our spin department is very strong from below. In my opinion, we have good spinners, better spinners than India,” Stanikzai was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin are the fourth and fifth-ranked bowlers respectively in Test cricket. They bagged 81 and 94 wickets in India since the start of season 2016.
Well, after inflicting a whitewash on Bangladesh, Afghanistan will be gearing up for the One-off Test. He has cautioned India ahead of their debut Test.
Great preparation for debut Test for Afghanistan says Stanikzai:
“Great preparation for the Test match against India – the morale is high. Last couple of years we have performed well. We want to achieve it for Afghanistan. You see the batsmen, bowlers are all in good form,” Stanikzai said.
It must be noted that the home team will be missing the services of their regular skipper Kohli. His deputy Ajinkya Rahane will lead the team in his absence.