Big Jolt to Afghanistan; After Rashid Khan, another key player ruled out of one-off Test against New Zealand

Afghanistan young pacer Naveed Zadran has been ruled out of their only Test match against New Zealand which is scheduled to start from September 9 to 13 at Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex. Naveed will miss the Test match due to a side strain injury and physio has advised him to rest for 3-4 weeks. 

Naveed made his Test debut in Sri Lanka on February 2, 2024. He played two Test matches for Afghanistan where he picked up nine wickets. 

Afghanistan Cricket Board took their ‘X’ to announce that the physio advised him to rest for 3-4 weeks. 

“Naveed Zadran has been ruled out of Afghanistan’s only test match against New Zealand due to side strain injury. The physio has advised him to rest for 3-4 weeks hoping that he gets better before the South Africa ODI series in UAE” said Afghanistan Cricket Board. 

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The Afghanistan team will be without Rashid Khan because the bowling all-rounder is currently taking a rest because of his back issues and in his absence, Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead the side. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announced a 20-member preliminary squad for the upcoming one-off Test and the team has been training in India since their arrival on August 28. The board will pick a 15-member squad for the one-off Test match after assessing players' performances.

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On the other hand, the New Zealand cricket team have also arrived in Greater Noida for the one-off Test match. This will be the first-ever Test match between the two teams. 

Squads

New Zealand: Tim Southee (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (vc), Daryl Mitchell, Will O'Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Kane Williamson, Will Young. 

Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Abdul Malik, Rahmat Shah, Baheer Shah Mahboob, Ikram Alikhil (WK), Shahidullah Kamal, Gulbadin Naib, Afsar Zazai (WK), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ziaurrahman Akbar, Shamsurrahman, Qais Ahmad, Zahir Khan, Nijat Masoud, Farid Ahmad Malik, Naveed Zadran, Khalil Ahmad, Yama Arab.

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