Afghanistan have drafted quick bowler Mohammad Saleem into their one-day squad for the three-match series against India, which starts on 13 June in Dharamsala.
The 21-year-old right-armer was originally listed only for the one-off Test but has been rewarded for his six-wicket haul in that match at New Chandigarh. Despite oppressive 40-plus temperatures and a surface that barely entertained seam, Saleem clocked around 140 kph and kept running in – one of the few bright spots in an innings-and-350-run loss.
Team management confirmed on Tuesday that leg-spinner Rashid Khan will skip the final net in Mohali and link up directly in the mountains, while all-rounder Mohammad Nabi – already with the squad – is under the weather and sat out training.
At Wednesday’s session Saleem was, unsurprisingly, among the first into his run-up, rushing Rahmanullah Gurbaz with a back-of-a-length ball that leapt more than the batter expected. The coaches liked what they saw. Head coach Richard Pybus had praised him straight after the Test:
“He was just fantastic,” Afghanistan head coach Richard Pybus had said of Saleem’s performance in the Test match. “If you come here and 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 entered that Test as first change and, curiously, never got the second new ball. Pybus explained at the time that he is still piecing together the ideal attack.
“I don’t have any history with these guys before,” he 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 opener in Dharamsala the series moves south: Lucknow hosts the second ODI, with Chennai set for the finale. Afghanistan will hope Saleem’s extra pace gives them something different – and, perhaps, a little more bite – on Indian pitches that are rarely charitable to fast bowlers.
