Afghanistan‘s bowling consultant for the T20 World Cup and legendary West Indies pacer, Dwayne Bravo, played a crucial role in securing the final Bangladesh wicket, ensuring Afghanistan’s first-ever semifinal berth in an ICC event.
With nine runs needed off eight balls, Bravo, noticing himself on the big screen, subtly signaled Fazalhaq Farooqi to inform skipper Rashid Khan to deliver a short-pitched ball to Mustafizur Rahman. Farooqi relayed the message, and fast bowler Naveen-ul-Haq prepared to execute the plan.
While the on-air commentator and likely even the Bangladesh batters anticipated a short ball, it was a clever bluff. Naveen bowled a longer delivery on the stumps, catching Mustafizur off-guard. The bat failed to come down in time, and the left-hander was trapped in front.
You can watch the video here:
https://x.com/cricketandstuff/status/1805509627943031054
Australia had previously lost to India by 24 runs, making it crucial for Afghanistan to defeat Bangladesh to secure a semifinal spot. As the game appeared to be slipping away, a dramatic finish ensured that Afghanistan, not Australia, would face South Africa in the first semifinal in Trinidad on Wednesday, June 26.
Rashid Khan expresses gratitude to Brian Lara for believing in Afghanistan
During the post-match presentation, Rashid Khan acknowledged Brian Lara, the only expert on the Star Sports panel who had predicted Afghanistan as one of the four semifinalists. He also shared his emotions following the victory, saying:
“The only guy who put us in the semifinals was Brian Lara and we proved him right. When we met him at a welcome party, I told him we won’t let you down. It’s a dream for us to be in the semifinals. The way we started the tournament, the belief came when we beat New Zealand. It’s unbelievable.”
Rashid stated that their approach for the semifinals would be to relish the moment without being overwhelmed by its significance in his country’s cricket history. He expressed his joy in bringing happiness to the people back home.
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