BENGALURU, India: When Afghanistan plays its inaugural cricket test match against top-ranked India starting Thursday, it’s an event that has been 17 years in the making.
Afghanistan was made an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) back in 2001, at a time when it was the only sport that was approved by the oppressive Taliban regime. But after 9/11, even cricket became just an afterthought as the country spiraled into war.
Yet the game survived somehow among the Afghan people, who continued living in refugee camps lining the border to cricket-loving Pakistan. And it led to the rise of players like national-team captain Asghar Stanikzai, all-rounder Mohammad Nabi, hard-hitting wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Shahzad and pacer Shapoor Zadran.
All of them learned to play in the dusty outskirts of Peshawar, the home in exile of Afghan cricket, and are now preparing to step into the limelight of a five-day test match for the first time. Such matches can only be played between countries who have been given test status by the ICC, with Afghanistan set to become only the 12th official test nation.
“It’s a great moment for us as we embark on our test journey. To be playing our first test against India is a great honor and we hope to give a good account of ourselves,” Stanikzai said. “To be competing against the best on the test rankings table is something to be proud of and we will try to do our best in whatever chances we get and exhibit the skills the players possess individually as well as collectively as a team.”
In the past year or so, Afghanistan’s reputation has grown as they played at Lord’s in London against an MCC XI led by Brendon McCullum, drew an ODI series in West Indies, beat Ireland and Zimbabwe away, and then came back from the brink to win the ICC 2018 ODI World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe. Consequentially, an increasing number of Afghan cricketers have gained prominence.
Among their biggest stars is Rashid Khan, the 19-year-old leg-spin bowler who is one of the world’s most sought-after players in the shorter Twenty20 form of the game.
Born in Nangahar in eastern Afghanistan in 1998, Khan’s family moved to Pakistan to escape the war and then returned to Jalalabad a few years later. Back in his home country, Khan continued to sharpen his bowling and advanced to represent Afghanistan on the international stage in a one-day international in October 2015, a month after his 17th birthday.
Nicknamed the “Afghan Afridi” for his wicket-taking celebration mirroring those of Pakistan’s mercurial all-rounder Shahid Afridi, Khan has taken world cricket by storm with successes in major T20 competitions like the Indian Premier League, the Caribbean Premier League and the Big Bash in Australia. Khan was named the 2017 ICC Associate Cricketer of the Year, and now can’t wait to move to test cricket.
“There is immense happiness back home (regarding the rise of Afghan cricket). Our players are doing well in the IPL and everywhere across the world. It shows the Afghanistan cricket team is slowly rising through the ranks,” Khan told The Associated Press in an interview last year. “Ultimately, the goal is to play test cricket. Maybe, I will get to play Afghanistan’s first-ever test. Hopefully that day isn’t far away.”
In fact it arrives this week.
After a long wait, Afghanistan prepare for first Test match
After a long wait, Afghanistan prepare for first Test match
- The game survived somehow among the Afghan people, who continued living in refugee camps lining the border to cricket-loving Pakistan.
- Rashid Khan: “Our players are doing well in the IPL and everywhere across the world. It shows the Afghanistan cricket team is slowly rising through the ranks.”
Napoli cruise past Milan to book Italian Super Cup final spot in Riyadh
- Napoli make second Super Cup final in new four-team format, which was introduced in the Kingdom in 2023
- Milan rue missed chances as Rafael Leao’s absence due to knock proves costly
RIYADH: On one of the coldest evenings of the year in Riyadh, the atmosphere inside Al-Awwal Park was anything but subdued. Thousands of fans braved the conditions to witness another major chapter in Saudi Arabia’s growing international calendar, as Napoli and AC Milan went head-to-head in the first semi-final of the 2025/26 Italian Super Cup.
It wasn’t to be for I Rossoneri, as goals from David Neres and Rasmus Hojlund proved decisive for Napoli, sending them into the Super Cup final for the second time in the new four-team format after missing out on last year’s edition.
Backed by raucous Forza Milan chants, Milan nearly opened the scoring in the fifth minute when Ruben Loftus-Cheek tested Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, who reacted sharply to make a vital save.
Napoli responded with a spell of pressure of their own, but were repeatedly denied by a well-organised Milan defence.
Milan came close again in the 34th minute, as Adrien Rabiot was found inside the six-yard box from a dipping cross, only for his effort to fly over Milinkovic-Savic.
They would keep that momentum going as just a few minutes later, a swift counter-attack led by Alexis Saelemaekers found Christopher Nkunku on the edge of the box, though his strike also flew over goal.
Napoli punished Milan’s missed chances in the 39th minute. A low pass from Rasmus Hojlund across the box was parried by Mike Maignan straight into the path of David Neres, who made no mistake slotting the ball into the open net.
Napoli pushed for a second before the interval, with Hojlund testing Maignan again, who turned the striker’s effort behind for a corner. The Milan goalkeeper was called into action once again in the second half, producing a strong save to deny Amir Rrahmani.
Yet it was another powerful strike that finally broke past the Frenchman, with Rasmus Hojlund capitalising on a deep through ball from Leonardo Spinazzola to extend Napoli’s lead in the 63rd minute and tighten their grip on the game.
Milan fans briefly found a lift in the 75th minute when Luka Modric came out to a standing ovation, though it proved to be their only notable moment of the second half. Despite enjoying spells of possession, Massimiliano Allegri’s side were unable to break through and exited the tournament after just 90 minutes.
Napoli will now turn their attention to the final, where they will look to lift the Italian Super Cup for the third time in their history. For Riyadh, the semi-final marked another night of elite European football, with fans set to witness more action in tomorrow’s semi-final between Bologna and Inter Milan.
