| Afghan cricket team in Zimbabwe in 2019 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |  | ||
| Zimbabwe | Afghanistan | ||
| Date | August 2019 | ||
| Test series | |||
| One Day International series | |||
| Twenty20 International series | |||
The Afghanistan cricket team are scheduled to tour Zimbabwe from August 2019 to play one Test, five One Day Internationals (ODIs) and three Twenty20 International (T20I) matches. [1] [2] A proposed five-match ODI series, scheduled to take place between the two sides in Zimbabwe in April 2019, was called off in March. [3] [4]
The Afghanistan men's national team is the 12th test cricket playing Full Member nation. Cricket has been played in Afghanistan since the mid 19th century, but it is only in recent years that the national team has become successful. The Afghanistan Cricket Board was formed in 1995 and became an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2001 and a member of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in 2003.
Test cricket is the form of the sport of cricket with the longest match duration, and is considered the game's highest standard. However, Test Cricket is also the least popular format among the younger generation and the popularity of the format is slowly fading. Test matches are played between national representative teams that have been granted ‘Test status’, as determined and conferred by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The term Test stems from the fact that the long, gruelling matches are mentally and physically testing. Two teams of 11 players each play a four-innings match, which may last up to five days. It is generally considered the most complete examination of a team's endurance and ability.
A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, usually 50. The Cricket World Cup, generally held every four years, is played in this format. One Day International matches are also called Limited Overs Internationals (LOI), although this generic term may also refer to Twenty20 International matches. They are major matches and considered the highest standard of List A, limited overs competition.
Following the 2019 Cricket World Cup, where Aghanistan lost all of their matches, Rashid Khan was named as the new captain of the Afghanistan cricket team across all three formats. [5] [6]
The 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup was the 12th Cricket World Cup, a quadrennial, One Day International cricket tournament contested by men's national teams and organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was hosted by England and Wales, making it the fifth time England has hosted the World Cup, beginning on 30 May and ending with the final on 14 July. The final was played at Lord's in London, where England beat New Zealand on boundary count after both the match and the subsequent Super Over finished as ties.
Rashid Khan Arman, commonly known as Rashid Khan, is an Afghan cricketer and the current captain of the national team. He was one of the eleven cricketers to play in Afghanistan's first ever Test match, against India, in June 2018. He returned the most expensive bowling figures by a debutant in a nation's maiden Test match.
In July 2019, the ICC suspended Zimbabwe Cricket, with the team barred from taking part in ICC events. [7] It was the first time that a Full Member of the ICC had been suspended. [8] Later the same month, a senior player from the Zimbabwe team said that "we will play for free", in order to keep cricket alive in the country. [9] On 8 August 2019, Zimbabwe's Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) reinstated the directors of Zimbabwe Cricket, following a request from the ICC. [10]
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC), known as the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) until 2004, is the governing body for the sport of cricket in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe Cricket is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and administers the Zimbabwe national cricket team, organising Test tours, One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals with other nations. It also organises domestic cricket, including the Castle Logan Cup, the Coca-Cola Metbank Pro50 Championship and the Stanbic Bank 20 Series in Zimbabwe.
