Rashid Credits Lara as Afghanistan Reaches T20 World Cup Semifinals
Afghanistan beat Bangladesh on Tuesday to secure spot in final four
Captain Rashid Khan expressed his pride in Afghanistan’s achievement of qualifying for the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024, validating the prediction made by legendary West Indies batter Brian Lara.
Before the tournament, Lara had predicted that Afghanistan would reach the semi-finals.
“It’s a dream for us to be in the semi-finals. The way we started the tournament, the belief came when we beat New Zealand. It’s unbelievable. The only guy who put us in the semi-finals was Brian Lara, and we proved him right. When we met him at a welcome party, I told him we wouldn’t let him down,” Rashid said after the match.
Afghanistan secured their place in the final four by defeating Bangladesh in a thrilling contest by eight runs (DLS method) on Tuesday. This marks the first time in their history that Afghanistan has qualified for the semi-finals of a World Cup.
Chasing a target of 116 runs, which was later adjusted to 114 in 19 overs due to rain, Bangladesh were bowled out for 105 in 17.5 overs.
“We thought 130-135 was a good score but we fell 15 runs short. We knew they would come hard at us, and we knew that was something we could take advantage of. We didn’t need to do anything extra, just be clear in our plans. We wanted to make people back home happy, that was the discussion we had, and everyone did a wonderful job,” the Afghan captain said.
“In T20s, if you get a good start, it helps in the middle overs. Our openers have given great starts throughout the competition. It makes it easier for us to go harder at the batsmen. They have delivered and were very clear in their minds.”
Rashid highlighted the celebration back home, saying, “It’s a massive celebration back home. It’s a big achievement for us. We have done that at U-19 level, but at this World Cup, I don’t have any words to describe the feeling back home. We have to go into the semis with a very clear mind and make sure we enjoy the occasion.”
South Africa will face Afghanistan, while England will compete against India in the semi-finals. Both matches will be played on June 27.
