Sport

Afghanistan Champions League kicks off with grand opening ceremony

Published

8 months ago

April 20, 2024

The third edition of the exciting Afghanistan Champions League (ACL) football tournament got underway in Kabul on Saturday, with an impressive opening ceremony that was attended by officials, players and fans.

Attending the opening ceremony at the Afghanistan Football Federation stadium, officials, wearing traditional Chapan coats, praised players, including foreign players.

“Athletes represent the will of a nation. Today, it is our athletes who have been able to win great honors for their country on international grounds,” said Mohammad Yusuf Kargar, President of the Afghanistan Football Federation.

Kargar also raised the issue of security, stating players in the past had been drawn from a small pool, while today, with improved security, foreign players are also now able to play in the league.

“We have a different league today than the previous leagues, as there was no nationwide security in Afghanistan during the last 40 years,” Kakar said.

“Fortunately, with this nationwide security, today foreign players are present in the squads of football teams in Afghanistan. Players from Africa, Iran and Pakistan are included in the football squads in Afghanistan.”

Officials said that Afghanistan has great achievements in sports, and that the Islamic Emirate will continue to develop it.

“The victory of the Afghanistan national football team against India was an important achievement in the field of sports. Allah willing, we will try to take more steps in the field of sports to develop sports. We will expand sports from the center to the provinces and districts and make sports widespread,” said Ahmadullah Wasiq, the general director of physical education and sports.

The league is produced and broadcast by Ariana Television Network (ATN).

“Our goal is for football to grow in Afghanistan and for our national champions to achieve more and represent Afghanistan well,” said Lutfullah Stanikzai, Deputy MD, and Director of Sales and Acquisitions at Ariana Television Network

Shortly after the opening ceremony, the first match of ACL started, with Abu Muslim facing Sarsabz Yashlar.

Abu Muslim clinched a 2-0 victory.

Related Topics:#ACl AFF featured Football Sports

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Nepal pulls off one-wicket win over Afghanistan in U19 Asia Cup

After winning the toss and opting to bat first, Afghanistan U19 were bowled out for 123 runs in 35.4 overs

Published

3 hours ago

December 3, 2024

Ariana News

Nepal's U19 cricket team pulled off a dramatic one-wicket victory over Afghanistan on Tuesday in the final group match of the U19 Asia Cup in Sharjah, UAE.

After winning the toss and opting to bat first, Afghanistan U19 were bowled out for 123 runs in 35.4 overs.

Despite the win, Nepal will not progress to the knockout stages, as they lost their earlier matches against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Afghanistan is also out of the running having now lost all three of their matches.

The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) U19 Asia Cup 2024 started on November 29 and will run through to December 8.

Eight teams are taking part in the 50-over event, with Bangladesh defending champions.

As per the ACC U19 Asia Cup 2024 format, the teams have been divided into two groups of four teams each.

Group A has India, Pakistan, Japan and the hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Nepal are clubbed in Group B.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout round after the group stage matches.

The final will be played on December 8.

Sport

Afghanistan announce squads for white-ball tour of Zimbabwe

Published

2 days ago

December 1, 2024

Ariana News

Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Sunday announced the nation’s squads for the white-ball leg of the Zimbabwe tour which consists of three T20Is and as many ODIs, scheduled to begin on December 11 in Harare.

Promising young left-handed top-order batter Zubaid Akbari has earned his maiden call-up to the T20I squad. Akbari put on some stellar performances in the domestic season and was also a major contributor to Afghanistan A's glory at the Emerging Asia Cup. Additionally, Darwish Rasooli returns to the T20I side after an impressive domestic season. He also led the Afghanistan A lineup to their maiden title at the ACC Men’s T20 Emerging Asia Cup in Oman, earlier this year.

Afghanistan will continue to miss the services of prolific top-order batter Ibrahim Zadran, who is still recovering from the ankle surgery he recently underwent in England. However, there's good news for Afghan fans as frontline spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman has fully recovered from his right phalanx sprain, and has been added to the side for both the T20I and ODI series during the Zimbabwe tour.

“The calendar year 2024 has been both busy and successful for the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and the AfghanAtalan (Afghanistan A) lineup, with a packed schedule of home and away games and some remarkable achievements,” ACB CEO Naseeb Khan said. “As part of this action-packed year, the AfghanAtalan (Afghanistan A) lineup will be touring Zimbabwe for a full and all-format series, which we eagerly anticipate and look forward to the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.”

“AfghanAtalan (Afghanistan A) have a rich history of playing in Zimbabwe over the years and have performed exceptionally well there. Playing against Zimbabwe on their home soil is always challenging and brings immense joy. I believe the group of players selected for this series will rise to the occasion and make this tour a memorable one.”

ACB Interim Chief Selector, Ahmad Shah, remarked, “It’s a great feeling to see our frontline spinner, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, recover from his injury and be available for selection. He is an essential member of our squad, and we hope he continues to shine brightly for Afghanistan. Additionally, Zubaid Akbari and Darwish Rasooli have been consistent performers, not only in domestic cricket but also in the recently concluded ACC Emerging Teams Cup, where Afghanistan claimed the title. We have included both players in the T20I squad and wish them the very best for the upcoming series.”

Afghanistan T20I Squad for the Zimbabwe Tour:

Rashid Khan (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Mohammad Ishaq (WK), Sediqullah Atal, Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Nabi, Darwish Rasooli, Zubaid Akbari, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Azmatullah Omarzai, Nangyal Kharoti, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad and Naveen Ul Haq.

Afghanistan ODI Squad for the Zimbabwe Tour:

Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmat Shah (VC), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ikram Alikhil (WK), Abdul Malik, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Nangyal Kharoti, AM Ghazanfar, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Bilal Sami, Naveed Zadran and Farid Ahmad Malik.

ACB noted that white-ball leg of the tour has also seen a slight shift and a change in dates to help the spectators attend the key games during weekends. As per the revised schedule of matches, the three T20Is, which were originally slotted to be played on December 9, 11 and 12, have now been pushed back to Wednesday, 11 December, Friday, 13 December, and Saturday, 14 November.

These adjustments have also affected the ODIs, with the first game now scheduled for Tuesday, 17 December. The second and third ODI match will follow on Thursday 19 December and Saturday, 21 December, respectively. All these matches will be played at the Harare Sports Club.