Image Source: Instagram
[Saba Sports News] Afghanistan achieved their most significant victory on Tuesday, June 25, at the Arnos Vale Ground, defeating Bangladesh to secure a spot in the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2024. After this historic win, captain Rashid Khan expressed his joy on social media.
The Blue Tigers advanced to the Super Eight stage by defeating Papua New Guinea, Uganda, and New Zealand. Despite losing to India in the Super Eights, they bounced back with consecutive wins over Australia and Bangladesh, earning their first-ever World Cup semifinal berth.
Afghanistan’s path to the semifinals became clear after India’s victory over Australia the previous day. To secure their spot, Rashid and his team needed to defeat Bangladesh, which
they did by eight runs (DLS method) in a rain-affected match.
Following the memorable victory, Rashid Khan posted a photo with India’s captain Rohit Sharma, captioned with lyrics from the popular Bollywood song “Bambai se aaya mera dost” from the movie “Aap ki Khatir”. Interestingly, Rohit was the Player of the Match in India’s win over Australia, scoring a dynamic half-century.
In the low-scoring thriller, Afghanistan chose to bat first after winning the toss. They started cautiously on a challenging pitch, with openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran adding 59 runs in the first 11 overs. Gurbaz top-scored with 43 off 55 balls. Despite a late flourish from Rashid (19* off 10 balls), Afghanistan set a target of 116 in 20 overs, adjusted to 114 in 19 overs after rain interrupted play.
In response, Litton Das anchored Bangladesh’s innings with a 54 off 49 balls, but Rashid Khan and Naveen-ul-Haq’s four-wicket hauls restricted Bangladesh to 105 all out in 17.5 overs.
The stage is now set for the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2024.
A resilient Afghanistan will face unbeaten South Africa in the first semifinal on Thursday, June 27, at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad. Meanwhile, India will take on England in the second semifinal at the Providence Stadium in Guyana on the same day.