Win once, shame on you, but when you win thrice, you’ve proven your true mastery. This is what the Afghanistan Cricket team has achieved in the ICC World Cup 2023. After upsetting England, surprising Pakistan and then drubbing Sri Lanka, all of a sudden Afghanistan finds itself in the race for the semi-final spot in the World Cup
The Trott effect on Afghanistan cricket
Afghanistan batsmen in the past were known for playing “Anywhere for Six” type of cricket. Every batter would try to deal with boundaries and not really rely on partnerships. Thus, making themselves vulnerable to collapses and getting all out mere totals.
Under the coaching and mentorship of Jonathan Trott, for the first time, we are seeing a mature Afghan batting lineup. The idea now is to value their wicket, and play conventional cricket, where instead of taking risks, dealing with singles and doubles through proper strike rotation. For this strategy, Afghanistan has filled its middle order with batsmen like Rehmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Ikram Alikhil, who tend to take their time on the wicket.
As we saw in the World Cup match against Sri Lanka, Trott had broken the target into smaller scores with benchmarks. A goal of getting 100 by the 20th over, 150 by the 30th and chasing the total by the 48th. But the Afghans did it with 28 balls to spare.
Also Read: Team India’s meteoric rise in Cricket world cup 2023
Hashmatullah Shahidi’s leadership
Captain Hashmat probably does not have things as easy for him, as we may assume. A team which has risen in International Cricket only through aggressive batting has often been criticized ever since Hashmat was handed over the captaincy and started to take his time to get things going. With stalwarts like Nabi existing, and icons like Rashid there, it’s not very easy for a young captain to handle all these players.
Yet, Hashmat has done wonderfully well and has an outfit that stands united and follows the captain as he leads his team on the field.
Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) under the Taliban
Ironically, the ACB has been well managed under the Taliban govt compared to all other governments that have existed in the past.
During the ICC World Cup of 2019, the ACB in a surprise move had selected a squad consisting of veteran Afghan Cricketers that had not played for the national team for more than 2 years. A lot of the regular members were dropped, and Asghar Stanikzai lost his captaincy to someone like Gulbadin Naib who was not even a regular.
However, during the current World Cup, the team chosen by the ACB consists of players who have been playing regularly for the national team during the last 12 months. It seems as if the Taliban government may have knocked some sense into the ACB.
Afghan Spinners
One thing that has helped the Afghanistan team is that they have developed many good spinners over the years. Ever since Rashid Khan became an icon in Afghanistan, more spinners have risen from the ranks. Mujeeb Ur Rehman has been opening the attack for Afghanistan for a long, while Nabi, who is also known as Mr. President has adapted well to the game. With youngster Noor Ahmad also coming in, Afghanistan has an ideal attack set-up for the Indian wickets that have helped them win games here.
Can Afghanistan do the unthinkable?
All eyes are on Afghanistan, whether they can pull off a surprise semi-final entry or not. They have the chance and would be looking to win all their remaining games. They have the spinners, they have the mentor, so why not?
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