Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan will be donating his match fees from the ongoing World Cup to help the victims of the catastrophic earthquake that struck his country over the weekend. The powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake hit in some parts of the western Afghanistan, killing over 2,400 people, injuring over 2,000 and destroying at least 1,300 houses. It comes just 16 months after another major earthquake hit the country in June 2022 that led to 1,000 deaths.
‘Deeply saddened’: Rashid Khan on the tragic Earthquake
Khan – currently in India for the Cricket World Cup – said on social media that he was “deeply saddened” by the devastation left in the wake of the earthquake and wanted to do his part to help the victims. “I learned with great sadness about the tragic consequences of the earthquake that struck the western provinces (Herat, Farah, and Badghis) of Afghanistan,” he wrote on X/Twitter.
“I am donating all of my #CWC23 match fees to help the affected people. Soon, we will be launching a fundraising campaign to call upon those who can support the people in need,” he said.
Afghanistan had kicked off their World Cup campaign on the same day as the earthquake and had lost to Bangladesh. After being asked to bat first, the Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side managed just 156 runs before getting bowled out in 37.3 overs.
Opening batsman Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored the most runs for Afghanistan with a knock of 47 off 62 balls, while the side’s other batters weren’t able to go beyond 30 runs. Khan, an all-rounder, managed to score just nine runs in 16 balls before being bowled by Bangladesh’s Mehidy Hasan. In the second innings, the leg spinner went wicketless in his spell of nine overs, leaking 48 runs.
Afghanistan’s next game in the 2023 World Cup is a big one as they will take on hosts India on 11 October at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium.
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