Dawlat Ahmadzai vows to take Afghanistan's high-performance cricket system beyond Kabul

Afghanistan Cricket Board's newly-appointed High Performance Center (HPC) manager Dawlat Ahmadzai has identified decentralising the country's high-performance system as his biggest challenge, with the establishment of regional HPC centres central to his plans.

The ACB built its High Performance Center in Kabul to provide players with training camps and skills-development programmes. Dawlat, however, believes the next step is to take that support beyond the capital and create a more connected development structure across the country.

"My first priority after taking over the High-Performance Center was to establish a clear, professional, and sustainable high-performance system. I understand Afghanistan cricket from the inside because I have served the game for the last 26 years in different capacities. Based on that experience, I proposed to the top management that the HPC should become the central part of a structured player-development pathway, rather than functioning only as a training facility," Dawlat told Cricbuzz recently.

"Afghanistan has a tremendous amount of talent. But talent alone is not enough. We need a system that identifies talent early, develops it according to individual needs, continuously monitors progress, manages injuries properly, and prepares players for the physical, technical, tactical and mental demands of international cricket," he said.

Decentralising through regional centres

The former Afghanistan all-rounder wants the biggest change to be a decentralisation of high performance through regional HPC centres, taking coaching, strength and conditioning, sports science, medical support and performance analysis closer to players outside the capital.

"The biggest change I want to bring is to decentralize high performance through regional HPC centers. Afghanistan has talent across different regions, and we need to take high-performance resources, coaching, S&C, sports science, medical support and performance analysis closer to those players. This will strengthen the regional pathway and create a much larger and more sustainable talent pool," he said.

Integration with the national team

Dawlat also wants the HPC to work more closely with the national team, with the aim of creating a stronger pipeline of players ready to step up. He proposes that the selection panel should receive a written HPC performance report on relevant players.

"The second major change is to formally integrate the HPC into the player-selection and progression process. I believe the selection panel should receive a written HPC performance report on relevant players, clearly stating whether a player is ready to compete at the next level, needs more development, or should remain at the main HPC or a regional center for further preparation," said Dawlat.

"I believe the HPC can make a major contribution: improving the performance and long-term development of national-team and centrally contracted players. The HPC should not operate as a separate department from the national team. My vision is for the HPC, national team and domestic system to work as one integrated performance system, with clear communication, shared objectives and defined responsibilities.

"We have to strengthen regular communication with the national-team coaching and support staff so that we understand both the team's current requirements and its future needs. If the national team identifies a shortage in a particular position, skill or type of player, the HPC should be able to respond with a targeted development program," he said.

"For me, a successful High-Performance Center is not defined only by how many players it produces for the national team. Of course, producing international players is one of the most important measures of success, but the HPC has a much broader responsibility," he said.

Continuity across the pathway

A former national selector, Dawlat believes continuity across the different levels of Afghanistan's cricket structure is another area that needs attention, connecting talent identification, U19 cricket, domestic cricket, Afghanistan A and the national team.

"The biggest issue I see is continuity and alignment across the entire player pathway. We have talent identification, U19 cricket, domestic cricket, Afghanistan A and the national team, but these stages need to be much more closely connected. A player's development should not restart every time he moves from one level to another. My priority is to establish a unified national player-development pathway that connects every stage of the system," said Dawlat.

"First, we need to create more meaningful junior cricket competitions within the domestic structure so that young players have regular competitive opportunities before entering professional cricket. Second, we need to develop Regional High-Performance Centers (RHPCs) with appropriate facilities and specialist support so that development is not concentrated only at the main HPC," he said.

A three-to-five-year vision

Dawlat's aim is to see the changes take shape over the next three to five years, with the HPC becoming the engine of Afghanistan's player-development structure.

"My vision for the next three to five years is to achieve the goals we have set and establish the HPC as the engine of Afghanistan's cricket development system. I would like to see a clear and connected pathway from U19 to Emerging, Afghanistan A and ultimately the national team, where players are continuously monitored and developed rather than starting again at every stage. I want to see a much stronger pool of international-ready players, so that the national team has genuine depth and competition for every position," he said.

"I also want to see significant improvement in the quality of our coaches and support staff, stronger regional player-development systems through RHPCs, and better injury-prevention, rehabilitation and return-to-play programs. Most importantly, I want to build a culture where players take ownership of their own performance. The HPC should provide the environment, expertise, resources and direction, but players must understand that their development is ultimately their responsibility.

"If, after three to five years, we have more players consistently knocking on the door of the national team, a smaller gap between domestic and international standards, stronger coaches and support staff, better regional development, and a sustainable player-development system, I would consider that a major success.

"But my ultimate vision goes beyond simply producing a certain number of national players. We should not wait for talented players to appear. We should build a system capable of consistently identifying, developing and producing international cricketers. That is the legacy I want the HPC to create for Afghanistan cricket," he concluded.