Even before acquiring Test status, Afghanistan has been a nation on the rise in world cricket. One of the major reasons for their success has been the emergence of spinners as well as pace bowlers. In the pace department, the likes of Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, and Fareed Ahmad have come up through the ranks.
Fazalhaq Farooqi is a left-arm pace bowler representing Afghanistan. Born in Baghlan, Fazalhaq Farooqi began his professional career when he first represented the Amo Region during the Alokozay Ahmad Shah Abdali 4-day Tournament 2017/18. A year later, in 2018, Farooqi made his List A debut for Amo Region. Afghan selectors took notice of his performances in the domestic circuit and named him in the Afghanistan squad for the 2020 Under-19 World Cup. In 2021, he was named in the Test squad for the series against Zimbabwe but did not manage to make it to the playing XI. However, in March 2021, Farooqi made his T20 debut against Zimbabwe. The following year, he made his ODI debut against the Netherlands. He has appeared in various franchise leagues across the globe, such as the Indian T20 League, Big Bash League, Lanka Premier League, and Bangladesh Premier League. After being retained by the Hyderabad franchise in the 2023 Indian T20 League, Farooqi could not impress much in the few chances he got during the season. That said, he has been one of the mainstays of the Afghan pace attack and will be eager to impress in his maiden ODI World Cup in India.
Fazalhaq Farooqi has a skiddy action that helps him rush opposition batters with his pace. He also has the knack of swinging the ball into the right-handed batter. His skillset makes him a pacer to watch out for.
AFGHANISTAN
