Mohammad Shahzad and Samiullah Shenwari have been nominated for the Associate and Affiliate player of the year award. It is the first time any Afghan player has been nominated for an ICC award.
Batsman Shahzad and leg-spinning all-rounder Shenwari both richly deserve their nominees. Shahzad has scored masses of runs throughout the qualification period (24 August 2009 to 10 August 2010), with his main innings being an unbeaten double-hundred to lead Afghanistan to victory in a mammoth fourth-day chase against Canada. While Shenwari played a crucial role with bat and ball to take Afghanistan to the World T20 in the West Indies. The only disappointment is the omission of Hamid Hassan, who has been pivotal with the ball for Afghanistan.
We will have to wait until October 6th to see if Shahzad or Shenwari become the Associate and Affiliate player of the year.
