New Delhi: Afghanistan batter Rahmat Shah is confident that his team will give New Zealand a tough challenge in the upcoming one-off Test match in Greater Noida, thanks to their familiarity with the conditions.
Afghanistan have played six T20Is and five ODIs previously at Greater Noida, when it used to be their designated home venue and it is something Rahmat thinks will aid them in outclassing a star-studded Blackcaps.
“This Test is important. We have got only one Test match against them. We will try to give them a tough time. They have won the ICC Test Championship and we tried to have the best of preparations and we are looking forward to the challenge that is lying ahead,” Cricbuzz quoted Rahmat as saying.
“Our past experience in India will help us. We had our home ground in Noida and in Lucknow, and we have played a lot of matches here and done a lot of camps here. We are also accustomed with the weather and pitch conditions of India, so we certainly have an edge,” he added.
The 31-year-old is a standout batter in Afghanistan’s T20-dominated cricket landscape. He is the leading run-scorer for his team in both Tests and ODIs and avoids risky shots, prioritising wicket preservation.
Rahmat offered valuable insights into the technical changes he’s made, especially on the alignment and footwork aspects. “I just tried to concentrate more and practice more (to make some technical adjustments). Earlier my shoulder used to get open and I tried to make it sideways and tried to straighter my alignment.”
“When the fast bowler used to come I used to move towards off stump a bit more and as a result I used to fall down. I used to play my shot through my wrist but now I am trying to take my feet and just worked hard to get it (the new technique) into my batting template,” he stated.
Afghanistan and New Zealand will play the one-off Test at Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground from Monday, September 9.
–IANS