As Afghanistan gear up to take a struggling Indian camp in the T20 World Cup encounter on Wednesday, the Mohammad Nabi-led side has announced Sharafuddin Ashraf as a replacement for Asghar Afghan.
The 26-year-old Ashraf has played 26 international matches, including nine T20Is and was named as Afghan's replacement. He was a reserve as per the allowance for teams to travel with extra players in view of COVID-19 quarantine requirements.
Ashraf, a bowling all-rounder, has claimed five wickets thus far in his T20I career, claiming figures of 3/27 on debut in the format, back in 2015 against the Netherlands. He last featured for the Afghanistan T20I side in March, against Zimbabwe in Abu Dhabi.
Ex-skipper Afghan played his final game for his country on Sunday in Afghanistan’s 62-run win over Namibia. Afghan played 75 T20 international matches for his country, scoring 1382 runs and four 50s. He holds the record for most wins as a captain in T20 international cricket with 42.
Speaking after the Sunday's game against Namibia, Afghan had explained why he decided to bring the curtain down on his glittering career.
“Most of the people are asking why now and not the end of the tournament, but some things we cannot explain like that,” Afghan had said via a translator. “In the last match (against Pakistan) we were hurt too much, that’s why I’ve decided the time is right to leave the stage.
“I want to give a chance to the youngsters, this is a good opportunity for the youngsters to come forward.”
