'Won't give Rashid Khan': Afghanistan President tells Narendra Modi

Taking pride in cricketer Rashid Khan's performance in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Aghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Saturday called him an asset to the cricketing world.

Ghani even tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the tweet praising Rashid, claiming that they will not give him away.

"Afghans take absolute pride in our hero, Rashid Khan. I am also thankful to our Indian friends for giving our players a platform to show their skills. Rashid reminds us whats best about Afg. He remains an asset to the cricketing world. No we are not giving him away. @narendramodi," he wrote on Twitter.

Speculations are rife that President Ghani's tweet came in response to the several requests from Indian cricket fans on social media, demanding Indian citizenship for Rashid Khan. 

Rashid blasted an unbeaten 10-ball-34 runs, took three crucial wickets deplete Kolkata's batting fielded brilliantly to take Hyderabad into the final of the 2018 Indian Premier League against Chennai.

The 19-year-old ranks No.1 in the T20I rankings for bowlers and is No.2 in the rankings for ODI bowlers. 

Earlier this year, he led Afghanistan to the 2019 World Cup and is expected to be a huge draw when his country plays its first Test against India in June.

In the IPL, he is the biggest match-winner in a team which boasts of Kane Williamson, Shikhar Dhawan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Rashid finished with 3/19 and won the man-of-the-match award in another crunch game.