Mohammad Nabi named captain of Afghan team for T20 WC after Rashid steps down
Kabul(PTI): Veteran all-rounder Mohammad Nabi has been named Afghanistan skipper for the upcoming T20 World Cup after star spinner Rashid Khan stepped down from captaincy protesting the selection of the national squad without his inputs.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) is yet to officially announce Nabi's appointment as captain but the 36-year-old all-rounder tweeted that he has been chosen to lead the team.
"At this critical stage, I admire the decision of ACB for the announcement of leading the National Cricket Team in T20 Format," the 36-year-old Nabi tweeted.
"... we will present a great picture of the Nation in the upcoming T20 World Cup," said the spin-bowling all-rounder who plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League.
In a shocking decision, Rashid on Thursday stepped down as the captain of the team, saying that his opinion was not sought before finalising the national squad for the T20 World Cup.
Rashid's stepping down came immediately after the ACB named him as the captain of the 15-member squad for the showpiece event.
"As the captain and responsible person for the nation I reserve the right to be part of the selection of the team," the 22-year-old spinner said in a post shared on his twitter handle.
"The selection committee and ACB has not obtained my consent for the team which has been announced by ACB media," said Rashid.
"I am taking the decision of stepping down from the role as the captain of Afghanistan T20 side effective immediately. It's always my proud playing for Afghanistan."
The T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in the UAE and Oman from October 17 to November 14.
Afghanistan has been in turmoil following the takeover of the country by Taliban.
Soon after forming the interim government, the Taliban banned women from playing cricket or any others sports, casting doubts over Afghanistan men's team Test status.
As per ICC rules, all Test playing nations must have a women's team as well.
Cricket Australia (CA) all but confirmed on Thursday that its men's team's season-opening Test against Afghanistan, slated to start on November 27, will be scrapped due to the Taliban's order.
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Assam to lift all cases against Koch Rajbongshis in Foreigners' Tribunals: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma
Guwahati, Apr 4 (PTI): The Assam cabinet has decided to lift all cases pending against people from the Koch Rajbongshi community in the Foreigners' Tribunals, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday.
They will also no longer carry the tag of 'D' or doubtful voters, he said.
''There are 28,000 cases pending in different Foreigners' Tribunals in the state against people of the community. The cabinet has taken a historic decision of lifting the cases with immediate effect,'' Sarma said at a press conference here after the cabinet meeting.
The government believes that the Koch Rajbongshis are an indigenous community of the state and they are an inextricable part of ''our social and cultural fabric'', he asserted.
The people of this community are poor and have suffered a lot over the years, he said.
''They will no longer carry the tag of foreigners or ‘D’ voters,'' the CM said.
Foreigners Tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies, particularly in Assam, established to determine if a person residing in India is a "foreigner" as defined by the Foreigners Act of 1946, based on the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order of 1964.
These tribunals are designed to address matters related to citizenship and the presence of “foreigners” in India, specifically focusing on cases where someone is suspected of being an illegal immigrant.
There are 100 Foreigners’ Tribunals across Assam.
The Koch Rajbongshis have a sizeable presence in Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya, and parts of Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan, and they demand Scheduled Tribe status.
