Afghanistan team wants to win the Intercontinental Cup for Kabir Khan - Hamid Hassan
The emerging tigers of international cricket, the Afghanistan cricket team, want to win the ICC Intercontinental Cup as a souvenir for their former coach Kabir Khan. Afghanistan’s pacer http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Hamid-Hassan-c1524 told the media reporters that he and his teammates want
to win the Intercontinental Cup not for them but for their ex- team coach Kabir Khan.
The points table of the ICC Intercontinental Cup is currently being led by Afghanistan with 77 points from five fixtures. The side is planned to fly to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Kenya-c752 this week to play its final league match of this year’s ICC Intercontinental Cup scheduled to be
played from 2 – 5 October.
Hassan hailed Kabir Khan’s stint with the team, as its national coach. The emerging pacer said that Kabir was very good coach and had done very well with Afghan players for the past two years. He further added that the whole team misses its former coach
for all the good that he has done for them and are keen to win the Intercontinental Cup for him (Kabir Khan). Hamid Hassan revealed that if they returned home successful, they would gift the winning trophy to their ex-coach.
On August 19 2010, Kabir Khan stood down from his coaching position with the Afghanistan team, reason being the intervention of the Afghanistan Cricket Board’s (ACB) officials into team affairs during http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Scotland-c756. Another former cricketer
of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Rashid-Latif-c84084 has filled the vacant coaching place after Kabir’s resignation. Kabir Khan left the Afghanistan cricket team at the top of ICC Intercontinental Cup and No. 13 in the international ranking of one-day cricket. Pundits of cricket
had termed Kabir’s resignation as a huge blow to the Afghanistan cricket team who had just started its winning journey.
Kabir Khan has been coaching the Afghanistan national cricket team since 2008 and guided the side from 2008 ICC World Cricket League Division Five, through World Cricket League Division Four then Division Three and finally to One Day International status
during the ICC World Cup Qualifier in 2009. Soon after the Afghanistan team gained One Day International status, Khan axed http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Zimbabwe-c3045 XI. Hasti Gul's axing was followed by his brother, Karim Sadiq’s
decision to leave the national setup in a protest to his brother’s drop. Karim Sadiq criticized http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Khan-c71319’s decision as "injustices" and "wrong policies", and alleged the national coach of not acting in the best interest of the side. Heated Sadiq, though, returned
to play for Afghanistan later on.
It was under Kabir’s coaching that the Afghanistan cricket team clinched victory in the 2010 ICC World T20 Qualifier, which took them to the 2010 ICC World Twenty20, ever first international event of elite cricket that the Afghanistan side participated in
besides Test playing nations. Though Afghanistan lost both of their tournament matches to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 but participating in the prestigious event was a massive achievement for the emerging side.
Afghanistan pacer, Hamid Hassan has attributed the development of Afghanistan team as a leading team in the ICC Intercontinental Cup to Kabir Khan. He said that before playing in the ICC Intercontinental Cup, the team had no idea of first class cricket and
the players were lacking the patience to play longer version cricket. Hassan said that it was Khan who taught them the meaning of playing patiently and the significance of concentration.
He revealed that Khan had given them a tip that if they will play patiently, the scores and the wickets will follow them and the team kept following his words and started improving. He showed gratitude to the ex-coach: Thanks to him, we have learnt to play
the four-day format. But we still have a lot to learn.”
Hassan told the media men that his side is in the best possible form to continue its lead in the Intercontinental Cup. He said that the team combination is perfect and is much better than what it was.
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