‘A big sign for us’ – Rashid encouraged by young Afghanistan fast bowlers

Rashid Khan is the happiest of Afghanistan’s young fast bowlers to take responsibility and learn from every outing. He believes this has played a big role in developing the team into an all-round attack, unlike earlier when they relied heavily on the spin.

Left-arm pacer Fazlhaq Farooqui has been the most impressive, swinging the new ball from both sides with 140 clicks. After joining the Afghanistan senior team, the 21-year-old has had a successful year so far. He has also been a part of Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL and will play for the MI Emirates in the ILT20 in December-January.

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Farooqui has got an opportunity to work with bowling consultant Dale Steyn at Sunrisers. He had also talked about his conversation with India pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

In the Asia Cup so far, his new ball control has helped Afghanistan keep the opposition calm in the powerplays. His 3 for 11 in the opening game helped bowl out Sri Lanka for 105. He has an excellent economy of just 4.69 in the tournament so far.

Then there is Naveen-ul-Haq, who brings with him change very slowly:-

Then there is Naveen-ul-Haq, who brings with him a plethora of slow variations along with the pace, including a powerful back-of-the-hand slow delivery. Naveen has over time gained experience playing in the Vitality Blast in England, the CPL in the Caribbean, and the BBL in Australia, apart from a stint in Sri Lanka. He topped the charts in the Blast in 2021, taking 26 wickets in 14 matches for Leicestershire at an economy of 8.67.

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“The bowling has always been good for us, but if you look at us, the fast bowling department was struggling earlier, but now we have good bowlers,” Rashid said after Afghanistan’s training session on Thursday. “A player like Fazlhaq Farooqui has the experience of playing in the IPL.

“The exposure he got there (with Sunrisers Hyderabad) has been huge. We also have Naveen-ul-Haq, who is playing all over the world. That’s a big sign for us. The focus goes with each game.

Rashid is especially encouraged to adapt to situations with Afghanistan players and not be consumed by stage fright. While he hunted down Sri Lanka’s 105-run style by eight wickets, he had to dig deeper against Bangladesh.

The ball was not coming on the slow deck of Sharjah:-

On the slow Sharjah deck, where the ball was not coming, Najibullah Zadran, who came to bat at No. 5, helped him chase down the chase in style. In a game where no other batsman hit more than a six, Najibullah who came to bat at No. 5 hit six sixes in just 17 balls and converted into a cruise for a tough chase. Afghanistan needed 63 off 36, with Najibullah unbeaten on 43 off just 17 balls.

Rashid said, “The way the boys have performed, the way they have adjusted and taken the responsibility for themselves, it is worth watching.” “Even in Super 4, we are focused on playing the same brand of aggressive cricket, but learn from the mistakes we made and don’t repeat it.”