Sharafuddin Ashraf — All-rounder
Sharafuddin Ashraf joins Akcel United Kabul as a Gold pick of the 2026 draft — a 31-year-old slow left-arm orthodox bowler who has been in and around the Afghanistan setup for years, and who took seven wickets in the first APL season in 2018.
Ashraf is one of the few players in this squad who played the first APL season and is still here for the second. He took seven wickets in 2018 for Paktia, and eight years later he returns to the league with the same skill — slow left-arm orthodox, bowled with control — and a much longer record behind it. His T20I best is 3 for 24 against UAE in 2025, and his 99 first-class wickets have come at an average of 18.40.
Born in Kabul on 10 January 1995, he bats right-handed and bowls slow left-arm orthodox, and the squad table lists him as an all-rounder: a bowler who can hold a bat properly, not a tail-ender filling a gap. That matters in a five-team league where one side misses the playoffs — the lower order has to contribute, and Ashraf is the kind of number eight who can turn a 140 into a 165.
Kabul took him in the Gold category at the player draft in Dubai on 3 November 2026, for a reported US$40,000. He will bowl alongside Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Imran Tahir, giving Shane McDermott three different kinds of spin — off-break, left-arm orthodox and leg-spin — in the same attack.
APL 2026-27 in numbers
The season has not started yet, so Sharafuddin Ashraf has no APL 2026-27 numbers at all. The first ball is on Sunday 27 December 2026 at 5:30 PM Afghanistan time (5:00 PM Dubai time) in the UAE, and this page will carry his season figures from Match 1 onwards. Until then, the table below is honest: played 0, and everything else to be announced.
| Matches | Runs | Wickets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| APL 2026-27 | 0 | — | — |
What he brings into the season, in verified figures:
| Career mark | Figure |
|---|---|
| T20I best | 3/24 vs UAE, 2025 |
| APL 2018 wickets | 7 for Paktia |
| First-class wickets | 99 at 18.40 |
| Draft category | Gold — reported US$40,000 |
Season figures are to be announced — the season starts on 27 December 2026. Career figures are from the verified player record.
Where he fits at Akcel United Kabul
Sharafuddin Ashraf plays for Akcel United Kabul in APL 2026-27, captained by Azmatullah Omarzai and coached by Shane McDermott, with Nikhil Chopra as mentor. The squad of nineteen was set at the draft in Dubai on 3 November 2026 — 90 players picked from 462 across 18 rounds.
Ashraf is the left-arm half of Kabul’s spin trio, and the one who ties the attack together: Mujeeb’s off-breaks, his left-arm orthodox, Tahir’s leg-spin. On UAE pitches, where the ball has gripped for spinners in past tournaments, that variety is Kabul’s biggest weapon. The season starts on Sunday 27 December 2026 in the UAE; Afghanistan Premier League will follow every Kabul match, with fixtures on the APL Schedule and the standings on the APL Points Table. The full squad is on the APL Players page.
Five teams chase four playoff places in a double round-robin, so every team plays eight league matches — each opponent twice — and one side goes home after the league stage. The final is on Wednesday 20 January 2027. Kabul are a new club with no APL record yet, and that is the point: everything this squad does in 2026-27 will be a first.
Frequently asked questions
What is Sharafuddin Ashraf’s role at Akcel United Kabul?
All-rounder. The slow left-arm orthodox bowler bats right-handed and was a Gold pick at the 3 November 2026 draft.
Did Sharafuddin Ashraf play in APL 2018?
Yes. He took seven wickets in the first APL season for Paktia, and returns to the league eight years later with Kabul.
What are Sharafuddin Ashraf’s best figures?
His T20I best is 3 for 24 against UAE in 2025, and his 99 first-class wickets have come at an average of 18.40.