Afghanistan mull Youth Tri-Series with Pakistan, UAE

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has proposed the International Cricket Council (ICC) for a Youth Tri-Series with Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) alongside discussing a white-ball bilateral series with South Africa and New Zealand ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025.

The ACB Chairman, Mirwais Ashraf, and CEO, Naseeb Khan were in Colombo to attend the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s annual Board Meeting where they also met with Cricket South Africa, Cricket New Zealand and Cricket West Indies to discuss the possibility of a white-ball series before the Champions Trophy 2025.

“Afghanistan Cricket Board’s Chairman, Mr Mirwais Ashraf, and CEO, Mr Naseeb Khan, attended the ICC Board Meeting which was held this week in Sri Lanka and was attended by representatives from other member countries,” the ACB said in a press release.

“During the meeting, ACB's leadership presented recent achievements, activities, and future plans for the Afghanistan Cricket Board. They also held discussions with representatives from Cricket South Africa, Cricket New Zealand, and Cricket West Indies about potential white-ball bilateral cricket ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

“The discussions also included A team tours to Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, and the possibility of a Youth Tri-Series against Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, with the dates and venues to be confirmed.

“The ICC leadership and meeting participants praised ACB and AfghanAtalan’s recent accomplishments in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 and highlighted the team's remarkable performances and their significant contribution to entertaining fans around the world and the development of cricket in Afghanistan.”

The Afghanistan cricket team, under the leadership of Rashid Khan, recently surprised the cricket world in the T20 World Cup 2024. They defeated the likes of Australia, New Zealand and made their way to the semi-final, their first-ever last-four qualification in an ICC event.

While they lost to South Africa in the semi-final in a one-sided contest, Afghanistan proved their prowess as they played aggressive cricket throughout the tournament.