Afghanistan have added fast bowler Mohammad Saleem to their ODI squad for the three-match series against India. starting June 13 in Dharamsala.
Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi, however, were not present for the team's last practice session in Mohali. It is understood that Rashid will join the squad directly in Dharamsala, while Nabi, with the squad, is unwell.
Saleem was originally only part of Afghanistan's Test squad. He picked up six wickets in the one-off Test against India in New Chandigarh. Despite oppressive heat, he regularly touched 140kph and bowled long spells on a pitch that offered little for fast bowlers. He was one of the few bright spots for the visitors in their innings-and-350-run defeat.
On Wednesday, too, he was seen hurrying Rahmanullah Gurbaz with a short-of-good-length delivery.
"He was just fantastic," Afghanistan head coach Richard Pybus said of Saleem's performance in the Test match. "If you come here. you take six wickets in extreme heat against high-quality batting, that goes very well, not just for him as a bowler, but for us as a side."
Saleem had bowled first change and didn't get to share the second new ball either. When Pybus was asked about it. he said since it was his first assignment with the side, he too was learning about the strengths of the individual players.
"I don't have any history with these guys before," Pybus said. "So in terms of their combinations, this is part of my learning curve. I do know that he has had some niggles in the past. So, yeah, it's just getting them on the park consistently and allowing them to back up these performances."
After the first ODI, the teams will travel to Lucknow before wrapping up the series in Chennai.
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