Afghanistan’s top-order batsman dies in road accident

Afghanistan's top-order batsman Najeeb Tarakai has died of the injuries he sustained in a road accident last weekend, the country's Cricket Board (ACB) said on Tuesday. He was 29.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board had on Saturday tweeted that Tarakai was "severely injured in a car accident" suffered on October 2 and had undergone a surgery.

"ACB and Afghanistan Cricket Loving Nation mourns the heart breaking & grievous loss of its aggressive opening batsman & a very fine human being Najeeb Tarakai (29) who lost his life to tragic traffic accident leaving us all shocked!," the ACB tweeted.

"May Allah Shower His Mercy on him," it added.

Tarakai represented the national team in 12 T20Is and one ODI. The right-handed batsman made his international debut at the 2014 T20 World Cup in Bangladesh.

His highest international score was 90 which came against Ireland in a T20 International series in March 2017.

Tarakai's last international appearance was in September 2019 against Bangladesh.