Hashmatullah Shahidi resigns as Afghanistan’s ODI captain — Pajhwok

KABUL (Pajhwok): Afghanistan batter Hashmatullah Shahidi has stepped down as the national team’s One-Day International (ODI) captain with immediate effect. Shahidi announced his resignation in a post on his Facebook page. “Today, with full respect and on my own decision, I announce my resignation as captain of my team,” Shahidi wrote. “It has been a great honour for me to carry out this responsibility as captain. I am proud to have served alongside my team with honesty, unity and commitment. “By the grace of Allah, and with the efforts of our officials, coaches and players, we achieved many victories, won important matches, defeated major teams and raised the profile of Afghan cricket.” According to ESPNcricinfo, Shahidi led Afghanistan in 55 ODIs from January 2022 until their most recent assignment against India in June 2026. The 31-year-old captained Afghanistan at the 2023 Asia Cup, the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy. Under his leadership, Afghanistan won 27 ODIs, including memorable victories over England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Netherlands at the 2023 World Cup, where they narrowly missed out on a semi-final place. The team finished sixth, securing qualification for the 2025 Champions Trophy in Dubai. Afghanistan also defeated England again in that tournament but failed to reach the semi-finals after their match against Australia was…