'Brave' Afghanistan can beat anyone, says Hashmatullah
Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi said Sunday his side have the potential to challenge the world's top teams, but will need more exposure in Test cricket. Shahidi's team host New Zealand in a one-off Test starting Monday at their adopted home ground in India, near New Delhi, without key players including spin king Rashid Khan. Afghanistan suffered a bruising introduction to Test cricket in 2018 when they lost to India inside two days, but have improved since. Afghanistan hammered New Zealand in this year's T20 World Cup, but they have won just three Tests out of the nine they have played. "If you look at Test cricket, we are new in this format -- we need more experience," Shahidi told reporters at the Greater Noida ground. "As a team and as a country, we are brave people and we accept challenges," he added. "In the future, if we get more chances we will improve, and show that we are the best team." Afghanistan will miss leg-spinner Rashi