Samiullah Shinwari

A player with a bagful of variations, Samiullah Shinwari was initially brought in as a right-arm leg-break bowler. But over the years, his batting has become increasingly useful for the side.

Shinwari plays the game with a lot of energy and is a total team player. He made his international debut for Afghanistan against Scotland in 2009.

He was a part of a talented Afghan side that won the World Cricket League Division Five, Division four and Division three and Afghanistan cricket was at an all-time high.

Shinwari announced his arrival at the international stage with a composed 57-ball 52 against Scotland. A right-handed middle-order batter, The all-rounder was crucial in Afghanistan’s first win over Bangladesh at the Asia Cup in 2014. Alongside Asghar Afghan, he shared a 164-run stand for the sixth wicket that engineered a terrific victory for the underdogs. 

Shinwari has also represented Afghanistan at the 2015 and 2019 World Cup and was the backbone of the side, mainly due to his all-round abilities.

In November 2019, he was named as the captain of the Afghanistan side for the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup, held in Bangladesh.

In a T20I match against Ireland in 2020, the Nangarhar born player became the fourth Afghanistan player to reach 1000 runs in T20I cricket.

A utility player who always goes under the radar, Shinwari has served Afghan cricket for more than a decade now. He is a tremendous striker of the cricket ball and was one of the key players in Afghanistan’s rapid rise at the international level.

(As of November 2021)