Rashid Khan, a member of Afghanistan’s national cricket team, said in his new book that he turned down offers from India and Australia to obtain citizenship and play for those countries at the international level.
India’s Press Trust of India (PTI) reported yesterday that Khan revealed this in his new book titled “Rashid Khan: From Streets to Stardom,” which recounts his journey in cricket.
According to the report, the book focuses on themes such as loyalty, identity, and the red lines he chose not to cross.
Khan said officials from India and Australia contacted him, but he responded: “If I do not play for my own country, I will not play for any other country either.”
Speaking about the approach from India, Khan said that in 2023, when he was a key player for the Gujarat Titans, a team official told him that a senior figure from the Board of Control for Cricket in India wanted to meet him.
Khan wrote: “I went over and greeted him. We started talking, and he said: ‘The situation in your country (Afghanistan) is very bad. Come stay in India. We will give you Indian documents, live here, play cricket here’ I was surprised by what he said and didn’t know how to respond.”
He added: “I was surprised by what he was saying and didn’t know how to respond. But I smiled and said, ‘Thank you very much. I am playing for my country, Afghanistan.’”
