The Afghanistan Cricket Board has allowed six of its national players currently participating in the Caribbean Premier League to continue playing in the tournament till its conclusion despite a clash with the local Shpageeza T20 League. The T20 tournament in Afghanistan begins on September 6 while the CPL final is scheduled for September 10.
Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Najibullah Zadran and Zahir Khan are the six players currently in the Caribbean who have been allowed to extend their stay there till the end of the CPL following discussions between Cricket West Indies president Ricky Skerritt and ACB chairman Farhan Yusefzai.
“We understand the importance of the Shpageeza Cricket League to the ACB and the reasons why it had to be scheduled during the CPL after the NOCs were all issued,” said CPL’s chief operating officer Pete Russell in a media release on Friday (September 4).
“We truly appreciate the Chairman of the ACB allowing these six Afghan players to stay at the Hero CPL until its conclusion. Afghan players have had a huge impact on our competition, both this season and in previous years, and we are very grateful to have them with us until the final on 10 September.”
Rashid, the top-ranked T20I bowler in the world, represents Barbados Tridents who have been knocked out of contention for a semifinal berth. Mujeeb, the No. 2 ranked T20I bowler, will be able to play for Jamaica Tallawahs who have made it to the semifinals, as have St Lucia Zouks who have three Afghanistan players in their ranks – Nabi, Zahir and Zadran. Naveen’s team Guyana Amazon Warriors complete the semifinals lineup.
