On a day that swung between four nations amidst bouts of rain, Afghanistan prevailed to qualify for the semi-finals alongside India at the cost of Australia and Bangladesh.
Afghanistan stick to unusual approach
Throughout the 2024 T20 World Cup, Afghanistan had adopted a somewhat counterintuitive approach towards batting. Despite boasting of serious batting depth, their openers – Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran – took the game as deep as possible every time even if that came at the cost of scoring rate.
Against New Zealand, they added 103 in 14.3 overs to help Afghanistan post 183-5. Against Australia, 118 in 15.5 out of 148-6. Afghanistan won both matches. There was little reason for them to abandon the approach against Bangladesh. As Gurbaz (43 in 55 balls) and Ibrahim (18 in 29) put on 59 in 10.4 overs. Too slow? Perhaps, but it has worked for them against three Full Members…
Tigers… at least with the ball
Part of the Gurbaz-Ibrahim go-slow was due to outstanding bowling by the Bangladesh new-ball bowlers. The ball often whizzed past the bat in the early overs without finding the edge. Two balls from Tanzim Hasan Sakib took off and soared over Litton Das’s head to the fence.
On another day, the Bangladeshi seamers – Taskin Ahmed, in particular – would have left the field with better figures. Ibrahim even got a life when Towhid Hridoy dropped him. But they clung on, perhaps delaying the final onslaught a tad too much.
Rashid sends bat and ball flying
Sometimes the scorecard tells it all. Years later, when the next generation looks back at this one, they will see that there were only five sixes in the entire match, three of which came in a 10-minute blitz from Rashid Khan. Afghanistan, in the doldrums at 93-5 after 17.5 overs, added a valuable 22 in the next 13 balls. A couple of shots fewer, and Australia would have made it.
The Rashid blitz was not without drama. He swung the bat at a ball from Sakib in the last over and set off. As the throw came in, Rashid ran back for a second, desperate for the strike – only to notice that Karim Janat was not keen. Visibly angry, Rashid flung the bat on the pitch in Janat’s direction.
Rain and sun and wickets and hits
Bangladesh needed 116 to win – but they needed to get there in 73 balls to qualify for the semi-finals. Litton Das came out all guns blazing, but wickets fell at the other end, and Bangladesh were 31-3 after 3.4 overs when rain stopped play.
All Afghanistan needed from the match was one point, but a resumption seemed imminent. When play began, Bangladesh calmly surpassed the DLS par score. The match was on.
The target had been calculated with fervour since India’s win over Australia, but now the rain complicated matters. A rain-curtailed match meant not only DLS computations but separate qualification criterion as well. Caught in all this were the Afghans, who knew containing Bangladesh was as important as taking wickets, for the latter would alter the DLS par score.
Amidst all this, Rashid Khan struck twice in six balls, but Das and Hridoy struck two boundaries apiece. Bangladesh needed 43 in 19 balls to qualify with five wickets in hand.
Mahmudullah’s bizarre crawl
Until this point, Bangladesh had done everything a team chasing a steep target normally does – go for the big hits and, in the process, lose the odd wicket. The tenth over was a steep departure from that. Here, Mahmudullah played a gorgeous cover drive for four, but made little attempt to hit the other five balls from Noor Ahmad.
Rashid bowled the next over and, off the first four balls, Afghanistan managed only three singles. They had a chance to qualify, but Bangladesh seemed perfectly happy to settle for a consolation win and let the semi-final berth slip away.
Gulbadin’s two-act play
Rashid struck twice more with the last two balls of the over, bringing Afghanistan into the game yet again. Das put the first ball of the next over away, and Noor slipped in three dot balls. At this point, Bangladesh fell behind on the DLS par score, and Afghan coach Jonathan Trott gestured to slow the game down.
This has got to be the most funniest thing ever 🤣 Gulbadin Naib just breaks down after coach tells him to slow things down 🤣😂 pic.twitter.com/JdHm6MfwUp
— Sports Production (@SportsProd37) June 25, 2024
As the drizzle began again, Gulbadin Naib – hero of Afghanistan’s historic triumph against Australia two days ago – abruptly fell on the ground without a reason. The smile, combined with the suddenness of the mysterious cramp, was explained when the rain came before another ball was bowled. Rashid was not happy.
Naib seemed perfectly fit when play resumed a few minutes later. He bowled two overs and even broke the next partnership. On air, Ian Smith assured viewers that he would visit Naib’s doctor for treatment of his own dodgy knee.
The grand finish
Curiously, despite an asking rate below six (which made wickets more important than balls) Das was content not to shield Taskin. True, Taskin has some batting credentials, but a mid-over dismissal would expose Mustafizur Rahman, one of the least accomplished contemporary batters from a Full Member nation.
That was precisely what happened. When Mustafizur walked out, he had to keep out the last two balls of the penultimate over to allow Taskin. He couldn't manage even one.
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