Afghanistan vs West Indies: Skipper Rashid Khan insists his team will play 'smart cricket' in upcoming ODIs despite boasting of 'Afghani power'

Lucknow: Ahead of the ODI series against West Indies, Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan on Sunday said although they have ‘Afghani power’ to hit big shots, they will play smart cricket. During the pre-match press conference, Khan was asked whether the big ground will affect them as West Indies player can hit big shots. [caption id=“attachment_6859801” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Rashid Khan. Reuters[/caption] “We are not big in size but we hit big sixes. We have the Afghani power and this boundary will also be small for us. But we will have to play smart cricket and not focus much on big shots. Because on such big ground, you have to play smart cricket,” said Khan. He also emphasised the fact that they will focus on their own performance rather than focusing on how the West Indies players will play. “We will not focus on how they are against the spin; we will play our best cricket and deliver our best bowling performance,” said Khan. Afghanistan’s head coach Lance Klusener, who accompanied Khan during the press conference, said all the series leading them to the Asian Cup and T20 World Cup will be important for them. “Any series is important from here on as the Asia Cup and the World Cup are coming. Any series will bring us closer to finding the team that is going to take us in those big tournaments. So, the sooner we find those combinations, the better it is,” said Klusener. The first ODI match between Afghanistan and West Indies will be played on 6 November at the Ekana Cricket Stadium.