Afghanistan's T20 World Cup hopes face a massive collision after key player gets ruled out

Afghanistan team has suffered a big blow in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 as spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman has been ruled out of the tournament. Mujeeb Ur Rahman was one of the key spinners for Afghanistan in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman has suffered an injury on his index finger. The right-arm spinner could not participate in IPL 2024 due to the same injury. He played in the first game against Uganda but was rested for the last two games.

Noor Ahmed was added to the playing 11 as a replacement for Rahman in the last two matches and he also did a decent job. However, off-spinner Rahman will now miss the remainder of the series.

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Hazratullah Zazai named replacement for Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Interestingly, batter Hazratullah Zazai has been named as the replacement for Mujeeb Ur Rahman for the remainder of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Zazai is an opening batter and shares a different profile. However, it looks like the Afghan side needs a batter more than a spinner in the squad for the upcoming round.

Earlier, Afghanistan Coach Jonathan Trott had backed young spinners like Noor Ahmed and Nangeyalia Kharote to perform for the side in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. He also backed Mohammad Nabi to play a crucial role in the spin department if needed.

"He's [Noor Ahmed] going to be a big part for us going forward, as these wickets continue to wear. It's always nice to have the option of him to come into the side, or the left-arm spin of Nangeyalia Kharote, who can come into the side. He did really well in the last series against Ireland - and obviously, Mohammad Nabi, who can bowl spin as well", he had said in press conferences.

Notably, skipper Rashid Khan is one of the key spinners for the side and has delivered an awesome show as a bowler and captain. Below is Afghanistan's updated squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024

AFG updated squad: Rashid Khan (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Ishaq, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Nangyal Kharoti, Hazratullah Zazai, Fareed Ahmad Malik.

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Afghanistan makes it to Super 8 from Group C

Meanwhile, Afghanistan has made it to the Super 8 round of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Shockingly, the Asian side has displaced New Zealand from the top two spots in Group C. Afghanistan and West Indies are the two teams from Group C who have made it to the next round of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.

Afghanistan made a winning start by crushing Uganda in the opening game by 125 runs. They later stunned New Zealand by 84 runs to give a big shock to the cricket fraternity. In their last match, Rashid Khan & Co. defeated PNG by 7 wickets to win the encounter.

They will clash with the West Indies in their next match. The Afghanistan vs West Indies encounter takes place on Monday, June 17 at Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet. The winner of the match will top the Group C points table.