Nabi, Rasooli dropped from Afghanistan's T20I squad against Zimbabwe

As the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announced squads for their upcoming matches against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, Mohammad Nabi lost his spot in Afghanistan's T20I team, and Darwish Rasooli was left out of both the ODI and T20I teams.

In Abu Dhabi, Afghanistan will play Bangladesh in a one-time Test, then Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, and an ODI tri-series and a three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe. After that, they will take on Zimbabwe in a two-match Test series in Sharjah.

Darwish Rasooli, a middle-order batsman, has been dropped from both the ODI and T20I squads, while Mohammad Nabi has been dropped from the T20I squad. Mohammad Akram has been called up to the T20I squad for the series against Zimbabwe after making his T20I debut at the 2026 Asian Games. Young fast-bowling all-rounder Abdullah Tarakhil has also been rewarded for his impressive performances in the 11th edition of the Shpageeza Cricket League in July and has earned his place in the T20I squad,” ACB said in a statement.

Ijaz Ahmadzai, a right-handed middle-order batter, and Shahidullah Kamal, a left-handed middle-order batter, have both been recalled to the T20I squad. In the meantime, Fareed Ahmad Malik, who played in the reserves during Afghanistan's most recent T20I series against India, has been elevated to the 15-member main T20I squad.

Rahmat Shah will lead Afghanistan in both the Test and ODI formats after being appointed the team’s full-time captain recently. He led Afghanistan to a 4-0 ODI series win over Ireland in August. The upcoming Test against Bangladesh, however, will be his first assignment as Afghanistan’s full-time Test captain.

After missing the recent Test against India, fast bowler all-rounder Ismat Alam has been recalled to the Test team. Left-handed middle-order batter Shahidullah Kamal and fast bowler Yamin Ahmadzai have also been recalled as a result of their performances in the ongoing Ahmad Shah Abdali First Class Tournament 2026.

Shahidullah has scored 538 runs at an average of 76.85 in the tournament and currently leads the batting charts, while Yamin has claimed 42 wickets at an average of 12.73 to sit atop the bowling charts.

Experienced left-arm spinner Zia Ur Rahman Akbar also returns to the Test squad after missing international cricket for almost a year due to injury. Legspinner Khalil Gurbaz, who was part of Afghanistan’s Test squad for the Ireland Test in 2024, has also been recalled.

Rashid Khan and Ibrahim Zadran are still not playing in any Test matches. According to medical assessments, both players have been advised against participating in the longer format at this stage.

“Test cricket is of immense importance to us, and we remain committed to strengthening Afghanistan’s presence and performance in this format. Naseeb Khan, CEO of ACB, stated, "This will be the first time we host Bangladesh in a Test match, giving our players a valuable opportunity to compete in an important international assignment."

“Similarly, the two-match Test series against Zimbabwe presents another valuable opportunity for our players, particularly our emerging talents, to gain further experience in Test cricket. As we get ready for the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2027, the ODI Tri-Nation Series is also very important to us. Afghanistan Cricket Board remains committed to providing our national team with regular and high-quality international cricket. We highly value our relationships with the Bangladesh Cricket Board and Zimbabwe Cricket and appreciate their cooperation in making these important assignments possible,” he added.

The one-off Test against Bangladesh will be played from October 9 to 13 at the Sheikh Zayed International Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. The ODI tri-series will take place from October 17 to 23, with the first two matches taking place in Abu Dhabi and the remaining two in Sharjah.

The next set of matches between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe will be a three-game T20I series on October 27, October 29, and November 1, followed by a two-game Test series on November 5–9 and November 13–17. The Sharjah Cricket Stadium will be the venue for each of the five matches.

Afghanistan Test squad: Rahmat Shah (c), Ikram Alikhail (vc & wk), Afsar Zazai (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Abdul Malik, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Rahmanullah Zadran, Shahidullah Kamal, Ismat Alam, Qais Ahmad, Zia Ur Rahman Akbar, Khalil Gurbaz, Mohammad Saleem Safi, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Yamin Ahmadzai.

Reserves: Baheer Shah Mahboob, Naseer Khan Maroofkhil, Bilal Sami, Bashir Ahmad.

Afghanistan ODI squad: Rahmat Shah (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (vc & wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Nangyalai Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Bilal Sami, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Yamin Ahmadzai.

Travelling reserve: Qais Ahmad.

Afghanistan T20I squad: Ibrahim Zadran (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Noor Rahman (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Mohammad Akram, Shahidullah Kamal, Ijaz Ahmadzai, Azmatullah Omarzai, Abdullah Tarakhil, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Abdullah Ahmadzai, Farid Ahmad Malik.

Reserves: Faridoon Dawoodzai, Qais Ahmad, Nangyalai Khan.