Afghanistan Playing 11 vs Zimbabwe – 2nd Test, Afghanistan tour for Zimbabwe 2024-25

Afghanistan they will be looking to end their tour of Zimbabwe on a winning note as they contemplate a historic Test series victory in the African country. The second Test of the ongoing series between the two sides will begin on Thursday (January 2) at the Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo.

High on confidence after their win in the T20I and ODI series, the Afghans put up a stellar batting show in the first Test. The visitors were trailing after Zimbabwe posted a mammoth total of 586 runs in the first innings.

Sean Williams, Craig Ervine i Brian Bennett scored centuries for the home side. In reply, Afghanistan piled up 699 runs thanks to double centuries from Hashmatullah Shahidi, Rahmat Shah and a century from Afsar Zazai.

Zimbabwe were 142/4 in the second innings when proceedings ended. Ahead of the second Test, let’s take a look at the Afghanistan Playing 11.

Afghanistan Playing 11 vs Zimbabwe – 2nd Test, Afghanistan tour for Zimbabwe 2024-25:

Openers: Abdul Malik, Sediqullah Atal

Abdul Malik and Sediqullah Atal are expected to open in the Afghan Playing 11. After a good display in the ODI series, both the batsmen failed to impress in the first Test. Both failed to score big and will have a better display in the second Test.

Atal was out for just 3 runs and will be keen to bounce back. On the other hand, Malik started but could not convert it into a big score as he departed for 23 runs.

Middle-order and all-rounders: Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Afsar Zazai (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Shahidullah Kamal

The middle order of the Afghan Playing 11 had a game to remember in the first Test. Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi led the charge with the bat for their side. Shah scored 234 runs while captain Shahidi scored 246 runs.

Wicketkeeper Afsar Zazai also made his presence felt by scoring 113 runs. Shahidullah Kamal remained unbeaten on 29 runs in the first innings. Azmatullah Omarzai he was out for a duck in the first innings and will look to do well in the next Test. With the ball, Omarzai took a wicket.

Bowlers: Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Naveed Zadran, Zahir Khan

The visitors are likely to make a change to their playing XI for the second Test. Their star spinner Rashid Khan will return to the Afghan Playing 11 for the next game after missing the first Test due to personal reasons.

Zia-ur-Rehman picked up 2 wickets in the first innings but is likely to make way for Rashid in the Afghanistan Playing 11. Naveed Zadran picked up 2 wickets in the first Test and is expected to retain his place in the team He is the team’s only top-line pacer.

Afghanistan are likely to have two more spinners in the squad – AM Ghazanfar and Zahir Khan. Both spinners picked up 4 wickets in the first test. While Zahir picked up 2 wickets in each innings, Ghazanfar claimed 3 wickets in the first innings before picking another wicket in the second innings.