New Delhi, April 9 (IANS) Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan, currently turning out for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2026, has cast doubt over his participation in the upcoming one-off Test against India in June, saying the demands of red-ball cricket could put his long-term career at risk.

Shortly after IPL 2026 ends, Afghanistan will play a one-off Test against India in New Chandigarh from June 6-10. Since Afghanistan played its first Test against India in 2018, they have played 12 Tests and Rashid, who had 45 scalps in the longer format, has played in only six of them – last of which came against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in January 2025.

His red-ball availability has also been limited after undergoing back surgery post 2023 ODI World Cup. “I think I already played one before (against India in 2018 in Bengaluru). I will just take it easy. Imagine something happens to my back in a Test match. But I can’t play 100 Test matches. If you play one Test a year, you can’t play for 100 years!

“Red-ball cricket is a little difficult because that was the first thing my doctor told me – ‘stay away from red-ball cricket’. I still went ahead and played. After the surgery, I played a game against Zimbabwe and bowled 67 overs, which was crazy. The doctor told me, ‘if you don’t want to play cricket, you can keep playing red-ball cricket’.

“He said it’s not going to help me and that I won’t be able to play for long. I still went ahead and played, but when he found out I had bowled 67 overs across two innings, he was shocked. He said, ‘you can’t do that to yourself,” said Rashid in the post-match press conference, after GT beat DC by a solitary run in a nail-biting clash.

Rashid stressed he remains committed to ODIs, which he enjoys and believes he can play for longer, but red-ball cricket may have to be limited. “So yes, I will think about it. But ODI cricket – I really enjoy (playing) that format. I am in good shape to play ODIs for a longer period for Afghanistan. However, I want to be careful about how much I play and not put too much load on myself if I want to have a longer career.

“Red-ball cricket is something that looks a bit difficult for me. If it’s one Test a year, I will take that, but I don’t think I can manage more than that. I will try, but if I bowl a spell of 20–25 overs, I have to bowl the whole day if I’m in the team. In my last two Test matches, I bowled 167 overs, which is simply too much. I will take it easy and prepare myself for the World Cup,” he added.

–IANS

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