Staying in Dubai and playing all games in Abu Dhabi isn''t ideal: Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan

Dubai, Sep 9 (PTI) Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan on Tuesday bluntly assessed that staying in Dubai and travelling for nearly two hours one way to Abu Dhabi on every match day is not “ideal” scheduling for his team.

The bigger irony was Rashid attending a press meet here in the morning on the day when his team is set to take on Hong Kong at Abu Dhabi the same evening.

“Well, I don’t think it’s ideal - that’s what we were discussing [with the other captains] before as well,” Rashid said during the mandatory Asia Cup press conference here.

“To play in Abu Dhabi and stay here in Dubai for all three games…it’s different. But as professional cricketers, we have to accept these things," said the highest wicket-taker in T20I history.

But Rashid, who has 170 T20I wickets, also said that as professionals, he has to forget the scheduling and focus on the game.

“Once you enter the ground, you tend to forget everything else. In other countries, we often fly two-three hours and go straight to the game. I remember flying from Bangladesh to the US once and playing straight away." In fact, Sri Lankan skipper Charith Asalanka also spoke about the scheduling which has left very little time for his team to relax and recuperate after a gruelling away series against Zimbabwe.

“Right now, I'm feeling very sleepy. I should answer it tomorrow I think,” Asalanka said when he was asked about playing so many games with virtually no turnaround time.

“No, I mean it's really hard to play back-to-back games in Zimbabwe on September 6 and 7. And then travel here (Dubai) straightaway. I think actually we need to have a couple of days off. I hope the coach will give us.

“It's important to take care of our fitness. And we all know that it's really hot out there. And for me, it's really important to keep fresh and give 100% in the first game," Asalanka said. PTI KHS UNG