Ireland clinched the series 3-2 against Afghanistan on Wednesday night when they secured a seven-wicket victory over the visitors.

Mark Adair saw his first two deliveries flayed to the off side boundary only to respond with two wickets in as many balls in the game’s second over. Hazratullah Zazai sliced one to mid off where Simi Singh took a good over the shoulder catch while Rahmanullah Gurbaz nicked off the next ball.

Afghanistan wrested back some momentum when Usman Ghahu bludgeoned 20 off Singh’s solitary over, but a double strike from Josh Little — the second via a stunning Lorcan Tucker catch behind the stumps — put Ireland back in control before the rain came.

That brought the Afghanistan innings to a close. Ireland were eventually given seven overs to chase just 56. Andrew Balbirnie launched an early boundary over mid off while Paul Stirling also found the rope on two occasions to ensure Ireland kept up with the rate.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman did remove the openers to give Afghanistan a sniff but Harry Tector combined with George Dockrell to see the side home.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has released the Future Tours Program (FTP) for the cycle (2023-2027), which will see Afghanistan play 21 tests, 45 ODIs and 57 T20I matches.

Afghanistan are scheduled to play four series against Ireland and three against Zimbabwe while also taking on top teams like Australia, India and New Zealand in the next cycle of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Future Tours Programme that runs from 2023-27.

The announcement of the FTP, a result of the collective effort of Full Members with ICC’s support, ensures certainty of cricket fixtures with the confirmation of all bilateral series across the three formats. The exact dates and venues of the series are for the Members to announce in due course.

Afghanistan’s commitments commence with a full away tour of Bangladesh consisting of two Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is in June 2023.

Tours against Zimbabwe, Pakistan and the West Indies will be hosted over the next few months.

The maximum number of Tests for Afghanistan are penciled against Zimbabwe, whom they will also play in 12 ODIs and 12 T20Is apart from five Tests. Ireland, who got Test status along with Afghanistan in 2017, will be their rivals in four Tests, 12 ODIs and 10 T20Is.

The FTP announced today also confirms both home and away commitments against Australia, India and New Zealand.

Afghanistan Cricket Board Chief Executive Officer Naseeb Khan welcomed the announcement of the FTP.

ACB CEO Naseeb Khan: “Afghanistan Cricket Board is delighted to be a major part of the ICC’s Future Tours Program for the next cycle 2023-2027. The increased number of test matches will largely impact the growth of the game itself as well as the players, which is key in terms of our future plans.

Afghanistan Cricket Board announced Tuesday its 17-member squad for the ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup 2022, which will be played from August 27 to September 11 in the United Arab Emirates.

From the 16 players who are part of the Afghan Squad for the ongoing Ireland T20I Series, Samiullah Shinwari has replaced Sharafuddin Ashraf, who is now one of the reserve players for the event, along with Qais Ahmad and Nijat Masoud.

In addition, the left-arm wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad, who was replaced by Mujeeb Ur Rahman for the Ireland series, has also found his way to the side.

Chief selector Noor Malikzai said: “The Asia Cup is an important event for us and, as such, we have picked our best available players for the event. Samiullah Shinwari has been added to the side for the Asia Cup. He is in very good form and can give further impetus to the batting department, which already boasts Ibrahim Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran and Mohammad Nabi.

“Shinwari has not played any international match since March 2020, but he has done well in the recently held Shpageeza Cricket League 2022 and demonstrated that he is a good option to strengthen our middle order,” Malikzai said.

The Afghan National Team is currently in Ireland for a 5-match T20I series against the host country. The team will depart for UAE for the Asia Cup after Wednesday’s series decider against Ireland.

ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup 2022

Group A – India, Pakistan and Qualifier (one of UAE, Kuwait, Singapore and Hong Kong to qualify)
Group B – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka

27 August – Afghanistan v Sri Lanka, Dubai (DSC)
30 August – Afghanistan v Bangladesh, Sharjah
3-9 Sep – Super Four Stage

Afghanistan Squad for ACC T20 Asia Cup – Mohammad Nabi (C), Najibullah Zadran (VC), Afsar Zazai (WK), Azmatullah Omarzai, Farid Ahmad Malik, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Hazratullah Zazai, Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Mujib ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Naveen ul Haq, Noor Ahmad, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Rashid Khan and Samiullah Shinwari. Nijat Masoud, Qais Ahmad, and Sharafuddin Ashraf are the three players who are reserves.