Afghanistan paceman Naveen-ul-Haq has opted to take a short break from ODI cricket in order to prepare for the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year. However, he will be available to play for Afghanistan in T20 Internationals. The pace bowler has been a member of the Afghanistan limited overs setup since he made his ODI debut against Bangladesh in September 2016. He made his T20I debut for the country versus Bangladesh in 2019 and has gone on to pick up 18 wickets at an average of 18.33. He recorded his best T20I figures of 3 for 21 versus Ireland last year in Noida.
Earlier, Naveen-ul-Haq had pulled out of the 2022 Pakistan Super League, citing personal reasons. The 22-year-old pacer, who was drafted by Quetta Gladiators earlier in December, confirmed his absence from the tournament on social media, posting: "Sad to be missing out from the PSL. Hopefully will play sometime in future. "His manager, Kaustav Lahiri, added: "I would like to confirm that Naveen has pulled out of PSL 2022 for some personal reasons. "PSL is a fantastic competition, and we look forward to being part of it in near future." A regular on the T20 franchise circuit, the fast bowler has enjoyed stints in the Bangladesh Premier League, Caribbean Premier League, Lanka Premier League and T20 Blast, finishing the 2021 edition of the latter with a competition-leading 26 wickets.
