Asia Cup: Afghanistan win toss, opt to bat against Hong Kong in tournament opener

Abu Dhabi [UAE], September 9 (ANI): Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan won the toss and opted to bat against Hong Kong in the Asia Cup campaign opener on Tuesday at Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

Hong Kong has taken steady strides and gained momentum with small wins. Nizakat Khan and Babar Hayat have spearheaded their batting attack, while Kinchit Shah has chipped in with valuable runs. In the bowling department, Ehsan Khan's off-spin remains their prime weapon.

Afghanistan recently featured in the T20I Tri Series against Pakistan and the UAE. They stormed into the final but got outplayed by Pakistan and surrendered the title. Rashid remains Afghanistan's trump card, and Sediqullah Atal's runs with the bat remain an ominous sign for them. However, Rahmanullah Gurbaz's silent outings at the top remain a massive concern for them.

After winning the toss, Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan said, "We would like to bat first. It looks like a good wicket to put runs on the board; a good total on the board will help the bowlers. In T20, it does not matter if you win the toss or not, but you have to give yourself the best opportunity to pick wickets in the middle period. It is already behind us, we are well focused on the game today, even if we had won the final, we would have focused on the game today and how to win. Just one change - Gulbadin is back."

Hong Kong skipper Yasim Murtaza was satisfied with the result of the toss and said, "We wanted to bowl first. I am happy to bowl. We worked hard to get here. We played good cricket in the qualifiers. As a captain, I am looking forward to seeing how Kalhan Challu will do on the big stage."

Afghanistan (Playing XI): Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, AM Ghazanfar, Fazalhaq Farooqi.

Hong Kong (Playing XI): Zeeshan Ali(w), Babar Hayat, Anshuman Rath, Kalhan Challu, Nizakat Khan, Aizaz Khan, Kinchit Shah, Yasim Murtaza(c), Ayush Shukla, Ateeq Iqbal, Ehsan Khan. (ANI)

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