“Hopefully, we can do it” - Veteran Afghanistan cricketer expresses wish to play for country with his son

Veteran Afghanistan cricketer Mohammad Nabi has hinted at not retiring from ODI cricket after the Champions Trophy 2025 despite his previous statements. Nabi has revealed that it's his dream to play for the nation alongside his son and hopes to have it come true.

The 40-year-old's son Eisakhil is a batter, representing the nation in the U19 World Cup last year. Nabi has arguably one of the most iconic players produced by Afghanistan across formats and has been integral to their meteoric rise in international cricket, especially in the last year or so.

In a video uploaded by the ICC, the spin-bowling all-rounder claimed he might play fewer ODIs moving forward to give the youngsters an opportunity. He said:

"These might not be my last ODIs, I will probably play less ODIs and give chances to the youngsters to build experience. I've discussed with the senior players and in the high-level games, maybe or maybe not, we'll see. It will depend on my fitness. It's my dream. Hopefully, we can do it. He is doing very well … he is a hard worker and I'm also pushing him to do work."

The Loger-born cricketer underlined that he keeps advising his son to work harder as that is needed to sustain oneself at the highest level. He added:

"I want him to make his own goals, if you want to get to be a high-level cricketer, you have to work hard. It's not enough to make 50 or 60, you have to score 100-plus. He's listening and pushing all the time. When he can talk to me, I try to give him advice to give him confidence for the game."

Afghanistan will come into the upcoming Champions Trophy as one of the firm favorites to reach the semi-finals. They defeated big guns like England and Sri Lanka in the 2023 World Cup and made it to the top four of the T20 World Cup 2024.

"The preparations for the Champions Trophy have been good" - Mohammad Nabi ahead of Afghanistan's campaign

Mohammad Nabi. (Image Credits: Getty)

Nabi revealed that witnessing Fortune Barishal winning the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) this year from a tricky spot gave him plenty of confidence ahead of the eight-team event. He explained:

"The preparations for the Champions Trophy have been good. I've been busy playing in the Bangladesh Premier League, was a champion over there. I did three sessions with the national team in Abu Dhabi so I'm in good shape.

"Winning the BPL gave me more confidence, from a tough position in the final. In the whole tournament, we did really well and my performances were good as well, bowling and also batting, I helped finish the job in four or five matches."

Afghanistan will start their campaign against South Africa in Karachi on Friday, February 21.