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Afghanistan team checks in at a hotel in Bulawayo yesterday

Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
INTERNATIONAL Cricket Council (ICC) associate member Afghanistan arrived in Bulawayo yesterday morning brimming with confidence that they will defeat Zimbabwe in the limited overs and Twenty20 series at Queens Sports Club.

Matabeleland Tuskers Cricket franchise chief executive officer Stanley Staddon welcomed the 20-member Afghanistan delegation at the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport and took them to their hotel before they held their first training session at Queens Sports Club later in the afternoon.

The visitors will play five one-day games and two T20 matches against Zimbabwe from October 16-27. Afghanistan team manager Shir-Agha Hamkar was confident his side would win the series.

They were last in Zimbabwe in July 2014 for a 28-day tour that saw them playing four one-day matches at Queens Sports Club and two four-day matches at the Country Club in Harare.

Hamkar said his players were excited by the appointment of former swashbuckling Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq as coach for their tour of Zimbabwe.

Inzamam, 45, scored 8,830 runs in 120 Test matches and 11,739 runs in 378 one-day internationals (ODIs) before retiring from international cricket in 2007.

“Inzamam is a cricket legend and everyone is excited that he is with us for this tour. We are very much looking forward to playing against Zimbabwe, who are a full member of the ICC. We’ve been here before, we know Zimbabwe play some good cricket and we also want to play our best and maybe get a win,” said Hamkar.

Afghanistan will play three warm-up games against Zimbabwe A before taking on the Chevrons in the first one-day encounter next week.

The first warm-up game is set for tomorrow at the Bulawayo Athletic Club (BAC) with the second on Saturday and last on Monday. Hamkar expressed gratitude to Zimbabwe Cricket for agreeing to accommodate them in their hectic international schedule.

Zimbabwe’s national team is in Harare preparing for three one-day games against Ireland that start on Friday and end on Tuesday.

Dates for the Zimbabwe and Afghanistan five one-day games are October 16, 18, 20, 22 and 24.

There will be a two-day break before the first T20 game on October 27 and the second on October 29.

Soon after Afghanistan’s departure, Bangladesh will arrive in the city for a three-week tour on October 31 for three ODIs and two four-dayers.

Bangladesh will play the first of three ODIs on November 3. The other games will be on November 5 and 7.

After the ODIs, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh will clash in two four-dayers to be played from November 10-13 and November 17-20.

Afghanistan squad

Players: Asghar Stanekzai (captain), Samiullah Shinwari, Aftab Alam, Mirwiai Ashraf, Dawlat Zadran, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Nabi Eisakhil, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Amir Hamzah Hotak, Najibullah Zadran, Shahzad Mohammadi, Fareed Ahmad, Nawaroz Mangal, Farid Malik, Noor Ali Zadran

Technical: Inzimam-ul-haq (coach), Shir-Agha Hamkar (manager), Jason Douglas (physiotherapist)