Rashid Khan ends Big Bash League boycott threat, nominates for draft

Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan, has made it clear that he wants to play in the next season of the Big Bash League (BBL).

This is a huge boost for Cricket Australia. He had threatened not to play in the T20 event after Australia pulled out of the ODI series against Afghanistan because of concerns about human rights. Rashid wasn't happy that the Australian team had cancelled the game against them because of the Taliban's ban on girls going to college in the country.

Rashid Khan had said in public at the time that he wouldn't play in BBL because he didn't want to make anyone feel bad. Even the other players had said they might stop taking part in the Australian T20 league if he didn't.

"I'm really sad to hear that Australia isn't going to play us in the March series. If it's so hard for Australia to play Afghanistan, I wouldn't want to make anyone in the BBL feel bad by being there.
So, I'll give my future in that race a lot of thought," Rashid said at the time.

A lot of water seems to have flown since then, though, and AAP says that the 24-year-old is likely to put his name in for the BBL abroad draught. Rashid Khan's teammates from Afghanistan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmed, and Izharulhaq Naveed, have also put themselves forward for the draught.

Rashid will be available first in the draught to the Adelaide Strikers, who are likely to keep the leg-spinner. He is expected to play at least the first seven games of the tournament before flying out to play in the second round of SA20 for MI Cape Town, where Rashid is already signed.