'No one should be surprised if Afghanistan lift T20 World Cup’: Shahid Afridi
Rashid Khan and Co. will play first semi-final against South Africa
Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has expressed that Afghanistan can win the T20 World Cup, and it should come as no surprise if they do.
Led by Rashid Khan, Afghanistan narrowly defeated Bangladesh in the last Super-8 game on Tuesday, securing their place as the second-ranked team in Group 1. They will face South Africa in the semi-final on Thursday. Neither team has ever reached the final in the tournament’s history.
“They should take a lot of confidence knowing that they have already beaten New Zealand, Australia and Bangladesh in a fantastic, low-scoring thriller. If they can do that, they can also lift the trophy and if they do, no one should be surprised,” Afridi wrote in his column for the ICC.
“Reaching the final of the World Cup will not only be good for the proud nation of Afghanistan but it will also be great for cricket. It will help promote the great game of cricket in nations where they are no longer considered ‘minnows’ and will inspire young cricketers to dream big and elevate nations,” Afridi believes. “More generally, seeing new teams make to the top four is wonderful.”
The 2007 T20 World Cup winner also picked out the players in the Afghanistan team that have impressed him the most, starting from the captain.
“Rashid Khan is leading from the front, they have a great opening pair who have produced amazing partnerships, and pacers who are bowling great line and length and taking vital wickets. Rahmanullah Gurbaz is the leading run-scorer in the competition and Fazalhaq Farooqi has taken more wickets than anybody else – he, Rashid and Naveen-ul-Haq have done wonders with the ball,” Afridi added.
The winner between Afghanistan and South Africa will play either India or defending champions England, who face off in a repeat of the 2022 T20 World Cup semifinal.
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