Sharjah: Afghanistan will take on India in their historic maiden Test match in June after gearing up with a limited overs series against Zimbabwe at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium next month.
Afghanistan, who was recently conferred Test status by the International Cricket Council (ICC), will play their first Test from June 14-18 in Bengaluru. The announcement was made after officials from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) met in New Delhi on Tuesday. Afghanistan and Ireland had earned the Test status in June 2017. These two nations will soon become the 11th and 12th Test playing nations.
When Afghanistan take on India in their first Test, they will become the fourth team to play their maiden Test against India after Pakistan, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. The BCCI has been supporting war-torn Afghanistan in their development and had recently offered their ground in Greater Noida for a series against Ireland.
Sharjah Cricket Stadium has been Afghanistan’s home ground since UAE’s cricket patron Abdul Rahman Bukhatir had opened the doors of this stadium in 2010 for their training as well as international matches. Afghanistan then went on to play their first-ever ODI World Cup in 2015.
Afghanistan’s series against Zimbabwe in Sharjah will feature two Twenty20 Internationals to be held on February 5 and 6. This will be followed by five One-day Internationals on February 9,11, 13,16 and 19.
With Afghanistan fans always turning up for their matches in large numbers in Sharjah, the Sharjah cricket officials are expecting a large turnout. Afghanistan announced that their hard hitting wicketkeeper batsman Mohammad Shahzad will make a return after his ban for consuming a banned substance Clenbuterol for weight loss.
