Three uncapped players — opener Riaz Hassan, all-rounder Shamsurrahman and pacer Khalil Ahmed — have been included in Afghanistan’s final 16-member squad for the one-off Test against New Zealand, scheduled to begin in Greater Noida on September 9. Star all-rounder Rashid Khan is not in the squad as he is recovering from an injury. Zahir Khan and Zia-ur-Rehman will lead Afghanistan’s spin attack in Rashid’s absence. Gulbadin Naib, Fareed Ahmad and Yama Arab, who were a part of the preliminary squad announced last month, have been omitted, while pacer Naveed Zadran is also missing due to a side strain.

“The squad is finalized based on players’ performance in the preparation camp. It is worth mentioning that 19 players participated in a preparation camp for around 10 days in Greater Noida and eventually, after consultation with the captain and coaching staff, the 16-member squad was finalised today,” said Afghanistan Cricket Board in a release.

The squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Abdul Malik, Riaz Hassan, Afsar Zazai (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Bahir Shah, Shahidullah Kamal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Shams Ur Rahman, Zia-ur-Rehman, Zahir Khan, Qais Ahmad, Khalil Ahmad and Nijat Masood.

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