Rahmat Shah has been appointed as the new Afghanistan ODI captain after Hashmatullah Shahidi resigned from his position ahead of the five-match series against Ireland, starting August 5. Notably, the 33-year-old batter has served as Afghanistan’s vice-captain in both Tests and ODIs since 2021. Now, he has been handed the baton to take command with the ODI World Cup 2027 in the mind of the selectors and team management.
Meanwhile, Rahmat takes up the role as Afghanistan’s leading ODI run-scorer. He has accumulated 4,121 runs in the format at an average of 35.22.
On the other hand, Afghanistan have included fast bowlers Fazalhaq Farooqi and Yamin Ahmadzai in their 15-member squad as they look to strengthen their pace attack for the Ireland series. However, spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman will miss the series after failing to recover from an injury.
The squad has also seen changes following Afghanistan’s three-match ODI series against India in June, where they suffered a 3-0 defeat. Fareed Malik and Bilal Sami, who were part of that squad, have now been moved to the reserves.
Veteran allrounder Mohammad Nabi will also not be part of the Ireland tour. The experienced campaigner, who featured in the India series, is currently playing for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Global Super League in Guyana, with the tournament scheduled to conclude on August 2.
Return of Farooqi and Ahmadzai
Farooqi and Ahmadzai return to the ODI setup after different periods away from the format. Ahmadzai last represented Afghanistan in a 50-over match in November 2022, while Farooqi’s previous ODI appearance came in February 2025. Farooqi has remained active through franchise cricket and is currently featuring in the Lanka Premier League, where he has taken five wickets in two matches for Dambulla Sixers.
The series against Ireland will begin in Bready, with the first two ODIs scheduled for August 5 and 7. The teams will then move to Belfast for the final three matches, which will be played on August 10, 12 and 15.
Afghanistan's squad for five-match ODI series vs Ireland
Rahmat Shah (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (vc, wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Nangyal Kharotai, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Yamin Ahmadzai, Saleem Safi, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi
Reserves: Qais Ahmad, Fareed Malik, Bilal Sami, Bashir Ahmad
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