Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan breaks silence on ‘second-best in Asia’ tag

SHARJAH: Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan has dismissed the notion that his team is the “second-best side in Asia,” clarifying that such labels come from external voices and not from the players themselves.

Speaking to reporters, Rashid addressed the persistent media chatter surrounding his team’s ranking in Asian cricket. 

“There’s always talk about us being the second-best team in Asia, but that’s not something we claimed ourselves,” Rashid said.

“That label came because of our past performances. If you look back — Asia Cup, World Cup semi-finals, ODI World Cup — we’ve beaten some top sides. Even in the Champions Trophy, we defeated England. Of course, in the future, if we don’t play well, we could slip to third, fourth, fifth, or lower,” he added.

Th all-rounder also emphasised that the team’s focus remains on improvement and maintaining the right mindset. 

“Our goal is simply to improve as a team and deliver on the day. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t — that’s cricket. What matters is staying hungry to perform and aiming to get better every time. The whole ‘second-best in Asia’ narrative is just something the media has created, not us,” he concluded.

It is pertinent to mention that the Afghan team began their T20I series against Bangladesh on a challenging note, losing the first match at Sharjah Cricket Stadium. 

Batting first, the Afghan side was restricted to 151-9 in 20 overs, with no batter reaching a half-century. Rahmanullah Gurbaz top-scored with 40 off 31 balls, including two fours and three sixes, while Mohammad Nabi contributed 38 off 25 deliveries, featuring one boundary and four sixes. 

Azmatullah Omarzai made 18, Ibrahim Zadran scored 15, and Rashid Khan remained unbeaten on 17, hitting a four and a six.

Chasing 152, Bangladesh got off to a flying start as openers Tanzid Hasan and Parvez Hossain Emon put on a 100-run partnership. Tanzid scored 51 off 37 balls, while Parvez smashed 54 off 37 deliveries.

Bangladesh later suffered a mini-collapse as Saif Hassan, Shamim Hossain, and Tanzim Hasan Sakib fell for ducks, with skipper Jaker Ali scoring only six.

However, lower-order contributions from Nurul Hasan (23 off 13) and Rishad Hossain (14 off 9) guided Bangladesh to a thrilling victory.

For Afghanistan, Rashid Khan was the standout bowler, taking 4/18 in four overs, while Noor Ahmad and Fareed Ahmad claimed one wicket each.

The second T20I of the three-match series is scheduled at Sharjah on October 3, with Bangladesh leading the series 1-0.