‘Abhi maza aajyga na bhidu, King awaits’ – Fans react to Naveen-ul-Haq being inducted into Afghanistan squad for ODI World Cup 2023

The craze as well as excitement for the 2023 edition of the ODI World Cup has slowly and gradually have reached its heights as the marquee tournament is just 21 days away. As September 12 was the last day for the participating teams to submit their preliminary squad, the Afghanistan team now have submitted their team for the major tournament. Surprisingly this time around, the selection committee for the Afghanistan team have put the former skipper, Gulbadin Naib in the reserves.

Along with that Naveen-ul-Haq is also set to make a comeback into the squad after sustaining a knee injury. Naveen’s addition to the squad will bolster the pace attack of the Afghanistan bowling attack. It is also to be kept in mind that the Naib was among one of the best players who have performed on continuous basis for Afghanistan team in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2023.

Additionally, the Afghanistan all-rounder was left off of the team that competed in a three-match ODI series against Pakistan. However, he continued to play in the Asia Cup starting 11. Hashmatullah Shahidi will captain the team, supported by Rashid Khan, an exceptional spinner, and Mohammed Nabi’s wealth of knowledge.

Rashid hasn’t appeared the same in ODI format, though. Rahmanullah Gurbaz is expected to take over as the team’s starting wicket-keeper. Rashid Khan, who is in charge of the spin department for their bowling assault, is joined by Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, Noor Ahmed, and the seasoned Mohammed Nabi. Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abdul Rahman, and all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai make up the pace-attack.

Let us see how Twitter has reacted to the inclusion of Naveen-ul-Haq into the Afghanistan squad: 

Afghanistan disarray in Asis Cup 2023

Afghanistan had a difficult time in the 2023 Asia Cup after failing to record a single victory throughout the competition. They had a chance to overcome the reigning champions Sri Lanka, but managerial errors ultimately cost them the match. With the game being shortened owing to rain and the Duckworth-Lewis system being used, Afghanistan had a chance to claim the victory.

But as a result of the errors in judgment, Afghanistan’s batting order ultimately collapsed, allowing them to lose and forfeit their opportunity to advance to the Super 4 round of the competition. Positives were noted during the team’s ODI series against Pakistan prior to the Asia Cup, where they came close to winning. In order to earn their first World Cup victory, the team will look to carry those positives into the competition and make their opportunities count.