Courtesy: Google
On Thursday, January 2, Afghanistan made a whopping five changes in their playing XI for the second Test of the two-match series against Zimbabwe, which is currently being played at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. After missing out on playing in the first Test match of the series last month due to personal reasons, star all-rounder Rashid Khan has made his return to the Afghanistan playing XI, and he will be aiming to deliver an inspired performance to help his team win the match and the series.
For the unversed, the toss in Bulawayo was delayed by nearly four hours due to persistent rain, followed by a wet outfield, but after the coin went up, Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine had no doubt about fielding first on a spicy pitch at the Queens Sports Club. He confirmed two changes in Zimbabwe playing XI from the first Test, bringing in Sikandar Raza and Richard Ngarava for Brandon Mavuta and Trevor Gwandu.
Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi also remarked that he wanted to bowl first on a pitch which is expected to assist the pacers early on. But, regardless, he announced five changes in Afghanistan playing XI from the first Test, leaving out the likes of Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, AM Ghazanfar, Naveed Zaran, and Zahir Khan, to bring in Rashid Khan, Yamin Ahmadzai, Fareed Ahmad, Riaz Hassan, and Ismat Alam, with the latter three receiving their first Test cap.
Below are the playing XIs of Zimbabwe and Afghanistan for second and final Test of two-match series in Bulawayo:
Zimbabwe: Joylord Gumbie (wk), Ben Curran, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Sean Williams, Dion Myers, Craig Ervine (c), Brian Bennett, Sikandar Raza, Newman Nyamhuri, Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava
Afghanistan: Abdul Malik, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Afsar Zazai (wk), Rashid Khan, Shahidullah Kamal, Zia-ur-Rehman, Fareed Ahmad, Yamin Ahmadzai, Riaz Hassan, Ismat Alam
