Skip to main content

The Afghan Stalwart- Mohammad Nabi




The evergreen Mohammad Nabi is still there playing and fighting for his team. He is the captain of a team that likes to go off its course if not handled by a steady and calm hand. Nabi might be 37 years old, yet he has only improved as a cricketer over the years and is a calming influence that the team has been required for a long time.

When Imran Khan would win the cricket world cup of 1992 and inspire his country, little did he know that he was also inspiring another group of people who belonged from another country that was in crises. Nabi would be one of those cricketers that would get interested in cricket from the 1992 world cup win. He would start playing the game in a refugee camp of Peshawar where he lived.

Nabi belongs from the earlier class of Afghani Cricketers who were handed over the baton from Allah Dad Noori and Taj Malik. Both Allah Dad Noori and Taj Malik would establish the grass roots of Afghanistan Cricket by creating an association, getting it accepted by the Taliban Govt at the time and than getting ICC’s recognition, and while this wasn’t enough, they were scouting people that could actually play the game.

Mohammad Nabi, Asghar Stanikzai, Shapoor Zadran and Hamid Hassan were these earlier cricketers. In fact, they were at the time considered as the future of Afghanistan Cricket. Nabi would start playing club cricket from Arshad Khan’s academy in Peshawar after which he would return to his homeland back in 2003.

However, it would be years before Nabi would get recognized worldwide. Nabi was an off-spin bowler competing in a world where off spinners were chucking to the top of the charts. While Nabi bowled an off spin delivery with a legal action he had very limited spin. His breakthrough would come when Mike Gatting spotted him along with Hamid Hassan. In fact, Nabi would get spotted for his batting master class where he struck a 39 ball century. That was enough for him to be selected and be part of the MCC.

Over the years, Nabi has gone through a lot. His team would face the disappointment of not qualifying for the 2011 world cup for which they placed a very good campaign. When his team finally did qualify, there would be issues by his cricket board who would remove Asghar Afghan as captain and select Gulbaddin as the man in charge. This would result in a winless 2019 world cup for a team that many had high hopes for.  If that was not bad, his country would face a regime change that would put their whole cricket association in a jeopardy, almost wasting the hard work of Nabi and co.

Nabi started off with Hamid Hassan, Shapoor Zadran, Mohammad Shehzad and Asghar Afghan. However, while the rest of the group have reached their retirement ages or are in decline, Nabi still stands tall like a stalwart, fighting the battles of his team with a new group of youngsters.


Nabi also has a 16-year-old son, Hassan Khan. Who knows, the way Nabi is playing and performing these days, we might get to see a father son duo in international cricket. 

Afghanistan has won every major trophy that ICC could had offered at associate/affiliate level, now Afghanistan eyes for an ICC trophy that has top team test members playing in them. Could Nabi be that captain that could bring the high glory for Afghanistan and its people and be an inspiration for the next generation of Afghanistan cricketer? One Prime Minister pulled this off, now its on you Mr. President

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Fazalhaq Farooqi- The Afghan pace man from Baghlan

Ever since Rashid Khan has emerged, Afghanistan has had handful of spinners coming from its system. However, not so long ago this country wasn't known as a spin producing country but a fast bowler producing country. The Afghani blue was once clothed by the likes of Hamid Hassan, Shapoor Zadran, Izatullah Dawlatzai and Dawlat Zadran. But with time, these pacers developed injuries' and while they retired, more pacers were expected to come. Soon, Rashid Khan would get discovered and every bowler that has come out from Afghanistan has been a spinner. While the country has produced some medium pacers, fast bowling seemed to had gone extinct.  In comes Fazalhaq Farooqi, a left arm pacer. The young pace man would start his journey from the U-19 cricket scenes in Afghanistan. He would take part in the U-19 World Cup of 2020 where he would get 5 wickets in four games at an economy rate of 5.12. Interestingly enough, Farooqi wasn't immediately selected to play in his country's do...

Asia Cup 2022: Afghanistan beats Sri Lanka by 8 wickets in tournamnet opener

  Asia Cup opened up in style when Afghanistan bamboozled Sri Lanka by winning the tournament opener by 8 wickets. The foundation of the match was set up by Fazalhaq Farooqi, who along with the Afghani spinners never allowed Sri Lanka to counter attack. With Sri Lanka managing to score just 105 runs, Afghanistan made sure to chase down the target in 10.1 overs. The Power Play The Afghan campaign was started by left arm pace bowler, Fazalhaq Farooqi who kept getting swing off the pitch. Farooqi would bowl two outswing deliveries to the left hander, Kusal Mendis, who would than be surprised with an inswing delivery which went on to hit the pads straight. With the on field umpire being reluctant, captain Nabi reviewed and the decision which was reversed. Charith Asalanka would come to bat only for Farooqi to bowl an inswing to the right hander which hit the pads and this time the umpire was confident that it was out. Naveen ul Haq would than also pick up the wicket of Pathum Nissanka ...