West Indian cricket legend Brian Lara foresaw Afghanistan's progress to the T20 World Cup semifinals nearly a month before the tournament began. Now, having fulfilled this prediction, skipper Rashid Khan expressed immense pride in proving the legendary cricketer right.
Afghanistan continued their remarkable journey at the T20 World Cup, advancing to their first-ever World Cup semifinal with an eight-run victory over Bangladesh in the last Super 8 match.
"The only guy who put us in the semifinals was Brian Lara and we proved him right. When we met him at a welcome party, I told him we won't let you down," Rashid said during the post-match presentation.
Lara, during a discussion with PTI editors last month, had predicted Afghanistan's potential to reach the semifinals of the prestigious tournament.
"Afghanistan, they are capable of getting into the (last) four," Lara remarked, while naming his favorites for the tournament.
Rashid mentioned that their belief in reaching the semifinals was sparked by their victory over heavyweights New Zealand during the group stage.
"It's a dream for us to be in the semifinals. The way we started the tournament, the belief came when we beat New Zealand. It's unbelievable," he reminisced.
Afghanistan also recorded a historic win over Australia before overcoming Bangladesh in the final Super 8 fixture, setting up a semifinal clash with South Africa on June 27.
In the match against Bangladesh, Afghanistan was limited to 115/5, but their bowlers, led by Naveen Ul Haq and Rashid, secured a thrilling eight-run victory.
"We thought 130-135 was a good score but we fell 15 runs short. We knew they would come hard at us and we knew that is what we could take advantage of. We didn't need to do anything extra, just be clear in our plans," Rashid explained.
Pace bowlers Naveen and Fazalhaq Farooqi have consistently performed well with the new ball throughout the tournament, much to Rashid's satisfaction.
"In T20s, if you get a good start, it helps us in the middle overs. They have given great starts to us in the whole competition. It makes it easier for us to go harder at the batsmen. They have delivered, they were very clear in their minds," Rashid added.
Regarding the multiple rain delays that eventually shortened the match, Rashid stated they were mentally prepared to take all 10 wickets.
"Rain is something not in our hands but mentally we knew we have to play 20 overs and take 10 wickets. That's the only way we could win. But Gulbadin, he had some cramps. But his wicket was invaluable to us," he noted.
The skipper anticipated a huge celebration back home.
"It's a big achievement for us as well. We have done that at U-19 level but at this World Cup, I don't have any words to describe the feeling back home. We have to go into the semis with a very clear mind and make sure we enjoy the occasion," he said.
### Shanto Blames Batters
Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto acknowledged that once again, the team's batters had let them down.
"We bowled really well. As a bowling unit, we did a lot of good things. But as a batting unit, we made some poor decisions, especially in the middle overs," he admitted.
"Throughout the tournament, we bowled really well, especially Rishad, the new guy, came and bowled really well. I am really happy for him. As a batting unit, we really need to improve a lot."
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