As Afghanistan takes on the New Zealand cricket team in a one-off Test match starting September 9 at the Greater Noida Stadium in India, their experienced skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi is confident that his side can compete with the best cricketing teams on any given day.
Speaking ahead of the challenging Test against the Kiwis, Shahidi feels that games like these will help his team improve in the future. “If you look at Test cricket, we are new in this format. We need more experience. If we get more chances on a regular basis, we will improve a lot. As a team and as a country, we are great people, and we accept challenges. In this game and also in the future, if we get more chances, we will improve and show that we are the best team,” Shahidi said.
“In six years, nine games is not much. If we get more chances with big teams, we will improve. It’s a good opportunity for us to play against New Zealand, given their rankings. Hopefully, the ACB will try harder to give us opportunities against bigger teams in the future,” he added.
Jonathan Trott preparing a challenging Afghan side
Afghanistan’s coach Jonathan Trott has done good work with the national side and has brought in some young talent as well.
“The coach wants us to be aggressive and improve. Every day we are trying our best. The youngsters who came to the team are talented and hardworking. There is a healthy and professional jealousy (rivalry) among the players as everyone is willing to give their best,” said Shahidi.
Afghanistan betting on familiar conditions against Kiwis
Shahidi is eager to capitalise on the conditions, having already played a three-day match at the venue. New Zealand, on the other hand, will be playing in unfamiliar conditions and will need to adapt quickly.
“We played one three-day game here, so we know the conditions. We will try to make the playing eleven according to the conditions. We want to improve in Test cricket, we accept all kinds of challenges. These are very big opportunities to show our talent — score big. If you want that, this is the place to show,” said Shahidi.
‘India is our home’
Shahidi also highlighted how important their home ground is for them and how the Afghanistan cricket team appreciates the venue and the playing conditions provided for them.
“India is our home, and when we host teams, other nations have played more cricket here. Hopefully, we will get a good venue here in India, and if we restrict ourselves to one venue, it will be effective for us. If you see our records in first-class, it’s good because we play at our home ground. We know those conditions. Hopefully, in the future, there will be a time when teams will travel to Afghanistan, and our average will be higher,” Shahidi added.
First Published: Sep 08 2024 | 5:41 PM IST
