World T20 team review: Afghanistan continue phenomenal rise

With their performance in the 2015 World Cup last year in Australia, Afghanistan showed the world that they won’t be mere pushovers in ICC events and during the 2016 World T20 they put on such a worthy show that belied their Associate status. They went toe-to-toe with the big teams and ended their campaign on a high by registering a win against the eventual winners, West Indies.They cruised through the qualifying stages with victories over Scoltand, Hong Kong and Zimbabwe before running Sri Lanka and South Africa close in the Super 10s. Mohammad Shahzad was the key figure while the likes of skipper Asghar Stanikzai, Mohammad Nabi and Noor Ali Zadran rallied around the opener. In their final group game against West Indies, who had already qualified for the knockouts, Afghanistan showed tremendous character to defend a low total of 123 to register a historic victory.
Record in the World T20:
Qualifiers: Played 3, Won 3, Lost 0, Points 6
Super 10s: Played 4, Won 1, Lost 3, Points 2
High Point: Many would have thought Afghanistan making it to the Super 10s with an unbeaten record would have been their high point in World T20, but the team managed to outdo themselves in the Super 10 stage and defeated West Indies by six runs. On a tricky Nagpur track, Afghanistan managed only 123 runs courtesy Najibullah Zadran’s late heroics (48 off 40 balls). With the ball, Afghans kept a stranglehold on Windies batting line-up sans Chris Gayle – rested for the game - throughout and with some sharp fielding defended the total in a thrilling contest. Spinners Amir Hamza (4-0-9-1), Mohammad Nabi (4-0-26-2) and Samiullah Shenwari (4-0-22-1) bowled beautifully in conducive conditions to help their team script history.
Low Point: Hard to pinpoint any low point during Afghanistan’s campaign as they punched above their weight, quite well in fact throughout the competition. But, after leaving England tottering at 39 for 5 on a tricky Feroz Shah Kotla track, a bit of complacency allowed England to post 142 for 7 and in reply, the superior skills of England fast bowlers proved to be too much to handle for the Afghan batting lineup. Shafiqullah’s 20-ball 35 helped the team cross the 100-run mark, but the Asian team fell short by 15 runs in a match that was theirs for the taking.
Most valuable player: 61, 41, 40, 8, 44, 4, 24 – the sequence of runs scored by Afghanistan opener Mohammad Shahzad in the qualifying stage and the Super 10s. He was the team’s MVP during the qualifiers where Afghanistan bullied their opponents and if that was not enough, Shahzad produced a gem of an innings against South Africa with his 19-ball 44-run assault that send shockwaves through the potent bowling lineup consisting Kagiso Rabada, Kyle Abbott and Chris Morris.
Major disappointment: Batting at the crucial number four position, right-hand batsman Gulbadin Naib was a walking wicket in the tournament. Naib, a handy allrounder, has played a key role in Afghanistan’s rise in world cricket in short time and even at a young age of 25, he is one of the most experienced players in the squad. While everyone else chipped in some way or the other towards the team’s campaign, Naib failed to step up to the plate.
Verdict: With their performance, Afghanistan not only proved that they are the best Associate team in shortest format at this point in time, but also did better than the two full members – Bangladesh and Zimbabwe – in the Super 10s. And if they are able to sustain the rate at which they continue to rise, it would not be long before a full member status is granted to Afghanistan.