Sport
Rashid Khan smashes 32-ball 79, highest score ever by No.8 batter in IPL history
Gujarat Titans’ Rashid Khan smashed a quickfire and unbeaten 32-ball 79 to register the highest-ever score by a No. 8 batter in the history of Indian Premier League (IPL) on Friday.
After winning the toss, Gujarat Titans asked Mumbai Indians to bat. Powered by Suryakumar Yadav’s maiden IPL century, Mumbai posted a daunting 218 for five in the first innings, The Hindu reported.
Mumbai’s Impact Player Akash Madhwal made early inroads for his side, dismissing Wriddhiman Saha in the second over. Rohit Sharma’s bowlers then found breakthroughs at regular intervals as Titans were left reeling at 100 for seven.
What could’ve been a damaging loss for Gujarat turned out to be a close shave following Rashid’s swashbuckling knock that included three fours and 10 sixes.
Rashid bettered Pat Cummins’ score of 66, who had come in at No. 8 for Kolkata Knight Riders against Chennai Super Kings during an IPL 2021 fixture at the same venue.
Earlier in the first innings, Rashid scalped four wickets to overtake Rajasthan Royals’ Yuzvendra Chahal in the Purple Cap list this season. Rashid has 23 wickets under his belt.
Former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel hailed Rashid’s knock as the best innings by a lower-middle-order batter in a long time while adding that the GT star denied MI a big win in IPL 2023.
“Rashid Khan, the bowler, and Rashid Khan, the batter, both turned up. It was an outstanding knock. I think the game was almost done. But he had other plans. The Mumbai Indians wanted a big win but they had Rashid in the way. To me, it’s the best innings that a lower middle-order batter has played in a long, long time. The kind of six-hitting we saw was unbelievable,” Parthiv said while speaking on JioCinema.
The Afghanistan Football Federation announced on Tuesday that Afghanistan’s under-15 national football team has qualified for the FIFA U-15 World Cup, marking a significant achievement for the country’s youth football development.
According to the federation, the qualification comes as a result of sustained efforts and strategic planning aimed at strengthening grassroots football across Afghanistan.
The federation said the successful organization of under-14 competitions in different zones of the country helped pave the way for the U-15 national team to secure a place in the global tournament.
In a statement, the federation said the achievement also follows efforts by its leadership, particularly Mohammad Yousuf Kargar, who held discussions with officials of FIFA while emphasizing the development of youth football in Afghanistan.
The tournament, part of FIFA’s global talent development program, aims to nurture young players, improve technical ability, provide international exposure, and prepare the next generation of footballers.
The competition will take place in Azerbaijan from October 22 to 31, 2026, with under-15 teams from FIFA member nations set to participate.
Players born in 2011 and 2012 will be eligible for the tournament.
Matches will be played in an 8-versus-8 format designed to maximize ball involvement, develop individual skills, improve decision-making, and provide young players with valuable international competition experience.
Afghanistan’s participation is being seen as a major opportunity for the country’s emerging football talent to compete on the world stage and further elevate the profile of Afghan youth football.
Sport
Afghanistan, Uzbekistan set for friendly cricket clash in Khost
The match will be played during a cricket league, and is part of the Cricket Development Support Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the ACB and the Cricket Federation of Uzbekistan in December last year.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced that it will host Uzbekistan’s national cricket team for a one-off T20 international on July 10 at the Rahmat Wali Masroori Cricket Ground in Khost province.
According to the ACB, the match will be played during a cricket league, and is part of the Cricket Development Support Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the ACB and the Cricket Federation of Uzbekistan in December last year.
The friendly match is scheduled to begin at 9:00 AM, with an Afghan XI taking on the visiting Uzbek side. The game will be broadcast live across Afghanistan and internationally through various linear and digital platforms.
Quoted by the ACB, Chief Executive Officer Naseeb Khan said the board remains committed to supporting emerging cricket nations such as Uzbekistan and is ready to extend similar assistance to other countries seeking to develop the sport.
He noted that the ACB has already organized capacity-building programs and training workshops for members of the Cricket Federation of Uzbekistan, while several Uzbek fast bowlers also participated in the ACB’s specialized Fast Bowling Camp last year.
Khan added that Uzbekistan has consistently maintained a friendly policy toward Afghanistan and that the two countries have strengthened cooperation in healthcare, politics, and trade in recent years. He said closer collaboration in cricket development would further deepen relations between the two neighboring nations.
Sport
Serbian Dejan Dedovic appointed head coach of Afghanistan national futsal team
Dedovic will lead Afghanistan’s preparations for upcoming regional and international competitions, overseeing the team’s technical development and training programs.
The Afghanistan Football Federation (AFF) has appointed Serbian coach Dejan Dedovic as the new head coach of the national futsal team on a two-year contract.
The agreement was signed during a ceremony attended by AFF officials, futsal committee members, technical staff, and sports journalists.
Dedovic will lead Afghanistan’s preparations for upcoming regional and international competitions, overseeing the team’s technical development and training programs.
The federation also announced several additions to the national team’s coaching staff. Iran’s Javad Asghari Moqaddam has been appointed technical director, while Morteza Mansour Samaei will serve as goalkeeping coach. Spain’s Uriel Masana has joined as assistant coach, Iran’s Sadeq Amani as fitness coach, and Brazil’s Joao Lira as team analyst.
In addition, the AFF renewed the contract of Mohammad Nasir Sedaqat as manager of the national futsal team.
The federation said it expects the newly assembled coaching staff to contribute to the continued development of Afghan futsal and strengthen the team’s competitiveness at the regional and international levels.
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