Mohammed Nabi scored 116 not out and Hamid Hassan impressed Mike Gatting and others with the skill, aggression and pace of his bowling as Afghanistan beat an MCC team comprised mainly of club cricketers by 171 runs.

Nabi and Hassan will join MCC in mid-season and have expert coaching from the staff led by Clive Radley, the former Middlesex and England batsman. The two Afghans will play for the club in another landmark match, the first MCC versus Europe fixture, to be held in the Netherlands in June. Recent MCC Young Cricketers include Rikki Clarke (England), Hamish Marshall (New Zealand) and Darren Sammy (West Indies).

The Afghan connection was the brainchild of Robin Marlar, the president, who has named Doug Insole, the former Cambridge, Essex and England batsman, as his successor from October. He has clearly forgiven Insole for making him change out of his dinner jacket and bat as nightwatchman for the Rest against Surrey, the champion county. Marlar was stumped second ball for six.

Insole was a ruggedly effective batsman who scored a Test century against South Africa and made more than 50 first-class hundreds. He turned 80 in April and is respected in cricket circles the world over.

He was a Test selector for ten years and managed England tours to Australia in 1978-79 and 1982-83. Appointed CBE in 1979, he became a life vice-president of MCC in 1993, 40 years after he joined the club’s cricket committee.

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