World Cup 2019 Preview: With match-winners in their side, Afghanistan have potential to cause upsets

It’s rare that a team entering the World Cup does so without a controversy. So when Afghanistan announced their squad before the tournament, they named Gulbadin Naib as the captain instead of regular skipper Asghar Afghan.

It caused a uproar in the team. Star players Rashid Khan and Mohammed Nabi slammed the decision. However, the Afghanistan Cricket Board decided to stick with Naib as the captain for the World Cup.

The doubts remained if the team would be able to come out of the controversy heading into the 50-over tournament. But as the World Cup nears, it looks like that those differences have been settled. The focus now shifts to how they can prove that the team are not mere pushovers at the event.

Cricket has been the salvation for the war-torn country. Now they are about to play at the biggest stage for the second time.

History at World Cup

Afghanistan played first ever World Cup in 2015 when they qualified for the mega event after winning the International Cricket Council qualifiers. The team that was in Division 5 – the lowest – of ICC. In just six years, they rose rapidly. Their story fascinated the cricketing world. So when they qualified for the World Cup, the nation erupted in joy. They weren’t expected to rock the tournament but they became the story of it.

Afghanistan were humbled by England, Australia and New Zealand. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka went on to complete convincing wins over them but Afghanistan managed to win one game. Against Scotland, Afghanistan chased down a 210-run target with one wicket in hand. Afghanistan were in trouble at 97/7 at one stage when Samiullah Shenwari scored a 147-ball 96 to guide his team to a historic win. Though they only managed one win, Afghanistan had announced their arrival at world stage.

Since 2015 World Cup

Afghanistan, since the 2015 World Cup, have leapfrogged into the top-10. They have had success at the international stage as they went on to record wins over Bangladesh, Pakistan, Zimbabwe and West Indies and even managed to hold India to a tie. While the results summaries their rise, it is the quality of cricket that the team has played that makes them capable of surprising any team.

At the 2015 edition, there was no Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Zadran. They did not have the experience of playing against top class sides apart from a couple of games – something that have had access to over the last four years. They managed to fight their way back to win the ICC World Cup qualifiers in 2018, played bilateral series and most importantly, attained Test status. They played their first Test against India, which is now their adopted home.

Keys to qualify for the semis

Having made it to their second World Cup, Afghanistan will now to look to go further than the group stages. With nine games to play in the group stages, Afghanistan need to be consistent.

It is likely that they can pull off a couple of shock wins but they need to back their skills in batting. Mohammad Shahzad can turn the game on it’s head if he gets going. But he needs support if Afghanistan want to score runs as a unit. Asghar Afghan, Hazratullah Zazai and the Zadran duo complete the line-up and have the experience to stick an innings together. Zazai, in particular, will be keenly observed following his recent big-hitting exploits.

They have proved many-a-times that they have it in them to play big shots but it will be a test for the Afghanistan batsmen with a lot riding on every game.

X-Factor

A lot will depend on their star player Rashid Khan. The player has travelled around the world playing in the T20 leagues. He is the best bowler in T20s, third best in ODIs and the best all-rounder in the world. So when he takes field, all eyes will be on him. He may not be the captain but is the leader of the team.

Afghanistan fans adore Rashid. He is the prince for them. If Afghanistan need to go deep in the tournament, the spin ace has to step up. Nabi, the veteran and a equally important part of the team as Rashid, will be another vital cog. Mujeeb had a poor outing with in the Indian Premier League this season. If he can find form, Afghanistan, especially on tracks that offer a bit of turn can be a handful.

Squad

Gulbadin Naib (c), Aftab Alam, Asghar Afghan, Dawlat Zadran, Hamid Hassan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Nabi, Mohammad Shahzad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Noor Ali Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Rashid Khan, Samiullah Shinwari

Fixtures