KABUL  -   Asghar Afghan has been removed as captain of Afghanistan just over a month before the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019, the Afghanistan Cricket Board announced on Friday. Afghanistan have, instead, opted for split captaincy, with Gulbadin Naib instated at the helm in one-day internationals and set to captain the side at the World Cup. Rahmat Shah will be in charge of the Test side, with Rashid Khan taking the Twenty20 International reins. Asghar, who replaced Mohammad Nabi as captain in 2015, had a highly successful stint in the role. Under his leadership, Afghanistan became a Full Member of the ICC, and in March, they secured a historic maiden Test victory against Ireland in Dehradun.

The 31-year-old commanded the team to 33 ODI victories, including a triumphant campaign at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2018, where they beat West Indies in the final in Zimbabwe. Afghan’s record in T20Is is particularly impressive – they won 37 out of 59 games with him in charge. Afghanistan will tour Scotland and Ireland in May to take on the hosts in two ODIs each. They will also lock horns with Pakistan and England in one-off ODIs before beginning their World Cup campaign against Australia on 1 June.