Hyderabad: Afghanistan are one of the names in ODI cricket who are trying to break through in the world cricket and their cricketers have made a mark on the global stage by featuring across various leagues. They have registered three victories each against Sri Lanka and West Indies so far indicating that the team has the capability to rise through the ranks in the marquee event.
The team will start their World Cup campaign on October 7 against Bangladesh in Dharamsala and will be banking on their spin core to succeed in the competition.
Strength
The team's spin core is their biggest strength to bag the ultimate prize and make work the unlikely possibility of Afghanistan lifting the silverware. IPL has proved on numerous occasions that Rashid Khan is a world-class spinner and his 172 wickets from 94 matches are a testament to this fact. Add, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman and Noor Ahmad to it and the spin trio can bamboozle batters in a group on their day.
Apart from them, Mohammed Nabi can rotate his arm and his off-break can be handy against left-handed batters. The Indian pitches are going to be helpful for spin bowlers and Afghanistan can emerge to be the biggest benefactor of it.
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Weakness
Batting has been a major area of concern for the side as they lack batters who can take on quality bowling units in the tournament. In spite of having a quality batter like Ibrahim Zadran, who has an average of 53.58, the team's batting unit has faltered under the crunch situation. A recent example was the one when they were playing against Sri Lanka and had almost pulled off a chase of 291 in a super quick manner. However, the innings suffered a collapse and Rashid Khan was left stranded at the other end.
Threat
Teams who are weak against spin bowling are going to face a lot of difficulties on Indian pitches. But such a weakness can turn out to be lethal against Afghanistan in the World Cup. They might pose a tough challenge in the World Cup games and cause some upsets on their way. Ibrahim Zadran will be also a big threat with the willow for the opposition teams. He has an average of 53.58 after 19 games scoring 911 runs.
Opportunity
There is no doubt that Ibrahim Zadran is the best cricketer in Afghanistan with an exceptional talent and so the World Cup will be the biggest stage for him to showcase his talent. Thus, the cricketer will have a chance to showcase his talent. Noor Ahmad is another youngster who will have a global platform to showcase his talent.
