Afghanistan pulled off one of the biggest upsets in cricket history, defeating Australia by 21 runs in the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup. This was their first win over Australia in any format after narrowly losing in last year’s ODI World Cup in India. The victory also keeps Afghanistan afloat in the race to qualify for the semi-finals of the tournament. Afghanistan have achieved great results over the years, but after victories over New Zealand and Australia in the ongoing T20 World Cup, it is safe to say that they are knocking on the door of becoming a cricketing powerhouse.
Former India all-rounder Ajay Jadeja, who mentored the team during the ODI World Cup last year, has claimed that Afghanistan will become a great team the moment they defeat one of the top cricketing countries.
A similar video resurfaced after Afghanistan’s famous victory over Australia.
“Some of the participating teams have been playing cricket for over 100 years. But Afghanistan is a young cricketing nation with around 15 to 20 years of experience. So this is all part of the journey. During the 2019 World Cup, Both India and Pakistan survived an upset against Afghanistan by the slimmest of margins. You are saying today that they (Afghanistan) are a small team, but the day they defeat a big team, they will also become a big team.” , said Jadeja during the ODI World Cup last year in India.
Jis Din Gira Denge, Us Din Ye (Afghanistan) Badi Team ho jaegi
New Zealand 2024 T20 WC
Pakistan 2023 WC
England 2023 World Championship
Sri Lanka 2023 WC@ACBofficials many more to come#T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/7CchESeFTB-Ajay Jadeja (@AjayJadeja171) June 15, 2024
After the match, even Australia captain Mitchell Marsh admitted that Afghanistan “outplayed us” on a night when his team dropped five catches.
“They are a very good cricket team who play against the best all the time and they have improved a lot in recent years,” Marsh said.
“We certainly know in these conditions that they are a very dangerous team. As I said before, they beat us tonight and the credit goes to them.”
With one match to play in the Super Eights, Afghanistan and Australia have two points each, while India top the group with four.
Afghanistan will face winless Bangladesh in their final Super Eights game in Kingstown, St Vincent, while Australia, who currently sit second in the group based on run rate, will likely need to beat India in St Lucia to secure a place in the semi-finals.
(With AFP inputs)
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