Following Afghanistan’s 21-run victory over Australia, captain Rashid Khan expressed that the win is significant for their nation and praised the performances of Gulbadin Naib, openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammed Nabi, and other key players.
Australia was stunned by an inspiring spell from Afghanistan bowlers, led by Gulbadin Naib and Naveen-ul-Haq, securing the 21-run win in the Super 8 clash of the T20 World Cup at Arnos Vale Ground.
After the match, Rashid stated during the post-match presentation, “Massive win for us as a team and as a nation. It is a great feeling. It is something we missed in the last two years. Happy with the win and super proud of the guys. It was quite important for us that we went back with the same playing eleven.”
“We are reading the opposition bowling lineup and selecting eleven accordingly. 140 was a good total on this wicket. We did not finish as well as we should have. The opening partnership gave us the best start. On this wicket, anything 130-plus, we were capable of defending it as long as we kept calm and had the belief. That is the beauty of this team, having allrounders and having options.”
“The way Gulbadin bowled today – the experience he has, it came good today. The way Nabi started – the wicket of (David) Warner – was also pleasing to see. It is so important for us back home and around the world. I am sure they are proud and would have enjoyed the game (the fans),” he concluded.
In the match, Australia won the toss and chose to bowl first. A 118-run partnership between Rahmanullah Gurbaz (60 off 49 balls, with four boundaries and four sixes) and Ibrahim Zadran (51 off 48 balls, with six fours) gave Afghanistan a strong start. However, tight bowling from Australia, including a hat-trick by Pat Cummins (3/28) and a fine spell from Adam Zampa (2/28), restricted Afghanistan to 148/6 in their 20 overs.
During Australia’s run chase, they were reduced to 32/3 at one point, thanks to a fine spell by Naveen ul Haq (3/20). All-rounder Glenn Maxwell (59 off 41 balls, with six fours and three sixes) held his ground, but crucial wickets taken by Gulbadin (4/20) pushed Australia on the back foot. Australia was bowled out for 127 runs in 19.2 overs, marking their first-ever loss to Afghanistan in international cricket.
Naib was named ‘Player of the Match’ for his match-winning spell, which included the wickets of Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, and Cummins.
With this win and one loss, Afghanistan sits third in Group 1, while Australia is second with the same win-loss ratio. Both teams have two points each. If India wins their final Super Eights game against Australia on Monday and Afghanistan defeats Bangladesh by a large margin, the current 50-over and Test champions could be eliminated from the T20 World Cup.