NEW DELHI: Minnows? Not at all. Afghanistan shed their 'minnows' tag with their dominant show in the recently-concluded ICC ODI World Cup 2023. Once regarded as underdogs, the war-torn nation Afghanistan went on to record four victories and finished sixth in the prestigious event. The performance also guaranteed them a berth in the 2025 Champions Trophy.
In the ODI World Cup, Afghanistan clinched memorable wins against England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.
(TOI photo)
Apart from ODIs and red-ball cricket, Afghanistan are considered more lethal in the shortest format of the game - T20s.
With Afghanistan set to face India in the three-match T20I series, starting with the opening T20I on Thursday in Mohali, their star pacer
Naveen Ul Haq
feels the team is more hungry for success in the series in order to prepare for the T20 World Cup.
The 2024 ICC T20 World Cup is scheduled to take place from June 4 to 30 this year, hosted jointly by the West Indies and the United States.
"Afghanistan are renowned for T20 cricket. Afghanistan are dominant when it comes to T20 cricket. We are high on confidence after a good show in the ODI World Cup. We are sure that we will carry on the same momentum in the upcoming series (vs India) and later on in the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and US," Naveen told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview.
(PTI photo)
Afghanistan will be without their star player Rashid Khan in the series. He is currently recovering from lower-back surgery.
Apart from Naveen, who retired from the ODIs just after the ODI World Cup, the Ibrahim Zadram-led side will have Noor Ahmed, Qais Ahmed, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohd Saleem Saifi in their bowling armoury.
"We have prepared ourselves really well. We are all working hard towards the goal. We have a few series before the World Cup, including the India series, and we will be ready by the time the World Cup arrives," Naveen said.
'KL RAHUL A GREAT LEADER'
Naveen represented Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2023. Playing under KL Rahul's captaincy, Naveen featured in 8 matches and claimed 11 wickets for his team.
(Photo credit: Naveen Ul Haq Instagram)
The Afghan pacer was one of the retained pacers by LSG for the IPL 2024, and termed KL Rahul as a great leader.
"Exciting times are ahead. I am really excited for another season with Lucknow Super Giants. I am looking forward to a superb IPL season. I am sure we have a good competition," he said.
"He [Rahul] is a great leader. I played under his captaincy last year. He leads from the front. I am excited to play under his captaincy once again. I had a great time playing under his leadership. He is a great human being. He gives players that liberty and motivation. His work ethic is absolutely amazing. I am really happy and it feels good to be part of the team he is leading," Naveen signed off.
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