Published: Mar 03, 2026, 04:48 PM (IST)
Edited: Mar 03, 2026, 04:48 PM (IST)
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has given a hint that there could be a change in team leadership after the side’s disappointing performance in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. Afghanistan failed to get past the group stage in two big tournaments in a row. They also missed qualifying for the Super 4 stage of the T20 Asia Cup in Dubai.
Rashid Khan, one of Afghanistan’s biggest stars and one of the world’s top T20 bowlers, has been captain since 2019. He stepped down before the 2021 T20 World Cup because of selection disagreements but came back after Mohammad Nabi resigned following the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. Now, his leadership is under scrutiny after failing to advance to the knockout stages in consecutive major events.
ACB CEO Naseeb Khan confirmed that the board is thinking about reforms in the team, but nothing has been decided yet.
“If you are building a team for the future, changes are inevitable,” he told Cricbuzz.
“We have already changed the head coach, batting coach, and trainer, and similar adjustments will also be made within the team.”
The ACB has already made major changes in the support staff. They appointed Toby Radford as batting coach before the World Cup and replaced long-time coach Jonathan Trott with Richard Pybus. Trott’s exit was expected because of his strained relationship with the board.
Now everyone is waiting to see if there will be a change in captaincy as well after the team’s poor show in the T20 World Cup 2026.
Afghanistan’s new head coach Richard Pybus has said he is ready to work with the team. His appointment is different from before – now foreign coaches will stay longer instead of coming only for big tournaments.
Naseeb Khan confirmed that Pybus will join the team after their white-ball series against Sri Lanka. The series will be played in Dubai and Sharjah from March 13 to 25.
For all latest updates of T20 World Cup 2026 you can visit: https://www.cricketcountry.com/icc-mens-t20-world-cup-2026/
