Afghanistan selectors on Tuesday named prolific opener Sediqullah Atal in their 19-man squad for the three-match one-day international series against Bangladesh in Sharjah.
Atal, 23, has previously featured in six T20 internationals for Afghanistan and earned his first ODI call-up after scoring consistently in the ongoing Emerging Asia Cup in Oman.
Apart from Atal, left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad also made his comeback after missing Afghanistan’s 2-1 series win over South Africa in Sharjah last month.
Afghanistan Cricket Board chief selector Ahmad Shah Sulimankhil described Atal as a player of the future.
Sulimankhil was quoted in the Afghanistan Cricket Board announcement. “We have included a promising top batsman in Sediqullah Atal who has impressed everyone with his consistent top performances.”
Atal scored 52, 95 not out and 83 not out in the Emerging Asia Cup.
Opener Naveed Zadran is recovering from ankle surgery and spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman is out with a right wrist sprain.
The three games are scheduled for November 6th, 9th and 11th.
The series will help Afghanistan prepare for the Eight Nations Champions Trophy, which will be held in Pakistan from February to March next year.
Afghanistan are ranked highly in limited-overs cricket, having defeated top-tier nations including England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka at last year’s ODI World Cup in India.
They also advanced to the semifinals of the T20 World Cup jointly hosted by the United States and West Indies last June.
squad:
Hashmatullah Shahidi (Captain), Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ikram Alihil, Abdul Malik, Riaz Hasan, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasouli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin. Naib, Rashid Khan, Nanyal Karoti, AM Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Bilal Sami, Navid Zadran, Farid Ahmad Malik.
