Asia Cup 2022: “I like their dabang style of play” - Aakash Chopra impressed with Afghanistan’s fearless attitude

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra is highly impressed with Afghanistan's fearless approach to T20 cricket. According to him, growing up in a country that seems to be forever in turmoil, Afghan players look at cricket as a means of expressing themselves freely.

Afghanistan will take on Sri Lanka in the first match of the Asia Cup 2022, which will be played at the Dubai International Stadium on Saturday (August 27). Apart from the two teams, Bangladesh have also been placed in Group B of the T20 tournament.

Previewing Afghanistan’s chances, Chopra said that the team is not scared of losing. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he commented:

“I like their dabang (fearless) style of play. They are not scared of anyone and just go all out. They have faced so much that this (cricket) is liberation for them. When they come to the ground, they don’t think about what would happen if they lose. Playing on that ground itself is a win for them. That is where they are absolutely dangerous.”

Afghanistan’s previous assignment was a five-match T20I series in Ireland earlier this month. The hosts won the hard-fought series by a 3-2 margin.

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“They are a wicket-taking attack” - Aakash Chopra on Afghanistan’s bowling

Shifting focus to their bowling, Chopra opined that they have good variety in spin, with the likes of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. He elaborated:

“They have an excellent bowling department, with very good variety in spin. Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s mystery has been solved to an extent, but he still bowls well with the new ball. Nothing needs to be said about Rashid Khan. Mohammad Nabi bowls off-spin.”

Chopra added that bowlers from the team believe in attacking and not getting defensive. He explained:

“Among pacers, they have Fazalhaq Farooqi and (Azmatullah) Omarzai as well. They are quite good. I like their bowling attack. They are a wicket-taking bowling attack and not a defensive one. They will go for 40 runs in four overs, but will pick up wickets.”

Concluding his thoughts, the former Indian opener pointed out to Afghanistan’s power-hitting in the batting department. He said:

“They have lots of power-hitters, be it Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz or Najibullah Zadran. All of them are very good strikers of the ball.”

After their opening match against Sri Lanka, Afghanistan will take on Bangladesh in Sharjah on August 30.