Afghanistan Creates History, Reaches T20 World Cup Semis

With an eight-run victory over Bangladesh in a rain-soaked Super 8 match, Afghanistan advanced to their first-ever T20 World Cup semifinal thanks to the outstanding Rashid Khan. This victory adds a remarkable chapter to the country's cricket history, which has already endured war, political exclusion, and even the lack of a home base.

Rashid's unconventional squad defeated Australia, the 2021 champions, in the process, having humiliated them in their earlier Super 8 encounter. On June 27, the Afghans will play South Africa in the round of sixteen.

After winning the toss, Afghanistan elected to bat, however their batting collapsed to a dismal 115/5 as Bangladesh bowlers exploited a tough surface by bowling as many as 66 dot balls.

Due to constant weather delays, the game was ultimately cut short to 19 overs per side, and Bangladesh was assigned a new goal of 114.

Leg-spinner Rishad Hossain (3/26), who opened for Afghanistan, was the main man, with opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz scoring a laborious 43 off 55 balls.

But with a gritty bowling effort led by Rashid (4/23) and pacer Naveen-ul-Haq (4/26), Afghanistan demonstrated why and how they have progressed this far in international cricket after only joining the ICC as full members in 2017.

Bangladesh was bowled out for 105 in 17.5 overs as a result of their heroics, which secured a successful and historic defence of the low score.

Bangladesh's lone player in the match, which also featured some dubious Afghan delaying tactics when they were up on DLS par score, was Litton Das (54 not out).

India made the task of the Afghans simple by defeating Australia by 24 runs last night.

Given the dearth of facilities in their conflict-torn nation, it wouldn't be incorrect to argue that India and the squad that views India as their home base had booted the Australians from the competition.

Afghanistan's opening duo in bowling and batting has been crucial to their successes, and Tuesday's script was no exception.

As Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran established a vital partnership at the bat, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naveen secured wickets at the front of the field.

Farooqi, who has a reputation for taking early wickets, did just that in the second over when he removed Tanzid Hasan (0). Naveen then produced a sensational over where he removed Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto (5) and Shakib Al-Hasan (0).

Rain stopped the match while Bangladesh was 31/3. They came out swinging when they got back into the game, battling their way up to 46/3 at six overs.

Then Rashid gave his introduction and performed his own magic.

He claimed two wickets in his next over, but Bangladesh carried on with their bold strategy and led on the DLS par score.

The Afghan captain, however, was having none of it and proceeded to take two wickets off of successive balls. In the process, he passed Tim Southee of New Zealand as the fastest player to get 150 T20 wickets.

Bangladesh was behind on the DLS par score when the rain began to pour for the countlessth time.

Afghan head coach Jonathan Trott was seen yelling at his players to calm down as he emerged from the dugout, while all-round player Gulbadin Naib collapsed, ostensibly due to cramping. The on-air pundit referred to him as the "eighth wonder of the world" for his quick recovery and ability to start bowling after seeing it as a delaying ploy.

Das persisted in being a pain in Afghanistan's side, holding his ground and smashing the ball over square leg to get his fifty.

But as wickets fell at the other end, Naveen came back to dismiss Bangladesh's number 9 and 10. Das was left all alone.

The squad, which has lost out on vital worldwide exposure since Australia refused to host it, citing the Taliban takeover and the condition of women's rights in the nation, entered a new era when the players started their tearful celebrations.

Afghanistan's batsmen struggled earlier when they chose to bat because the pitch offered nothing in the way of turn and lateral movement.

Gurbaz and Zadran prioritized getting wickets, but in the eleventh over, Zadran (18 off 29) tried to float an over long off, giving Bangladesh their breakthrough. When Hossain failed to get enough bat on it, he claimed his first victim.

Bangladesh was able to slow Afghanistan down with some seam and swing assistance from the surface. The Afghans crossed the 100-run threshold with to two sixes off the final over by captain Rashid.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Press Time staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.