By Aamir Latif
KARACHI (AA) - Thousands of jubilant cricket fans on Tuesday flooded the streets across Afghanistan to celebrate the blue shirts' advance to their first-ever T20 World Cup semi-final.
The inexperienced but stirred-up Afghan team beat Bangladesh by 8 runs in a rain-affected match at the Arnos Vale Stadium in St. Vincent, West Indies, on Monday (local time).
Rashid Khan's eleven successfully defended a modest total of 115 for five on a bowler-friendly surface after three rain delays and a revised target of 114 off 19 overs for Bangladesh.
The top leg-spinner Khan took four wickets for 23 runs and scored 19 off 10 balls, including three sixes, to win the match.
But it was Afghan pacer Naveenul Haq's day to be named man of the match. When he claimed the final two Bangladeshi wickets — Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman — off consecutive deliveries in the match's second last over, elated Afghan players burst into celebrations, hugging and greeting each other.
Scenes were no different back home, where delirious fans took to the streets to celebrate the historic victory.
Afghanistan will face the formidable South Africa in the first semi-finals on Wednesday in Trinidad.
“History- Afghanistan storm into the semis,” Afghanistan Cricket Board posted a celebratory message on X.
In Jalalabad city, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, thousands of people amassed downtown, shouting slogans in favor of their team.
"Nangarhar erupts," the Afghanistan Cricket Board wrote alongside a photo of thousands of jubilant fans celebrating the team's victory.
In a phone call to Rashid Khan, Afghanistan's acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi congratulated the team on reaching the semi-finals and wished them "more success."
“Congratulations to the Afghanistan cricket team on their huge success and terrific form in the T20. Hope to see an Afghanistan-England final on Saturday,” said Robert C Dickson, charge d’affaires of the UK Mission to Afghanistan, in an X post.
“Afghanistan have turned into a team that fight till the last ball. Fortune favors the brave,” a fan identified himself as Gulzar Agmad wrote on X.
This is the best performance Afghanistan have ever made in a cricket World Cup, beating some strong squads, including Australia.
Cricket was brought to Afghanistan from refugee camps in neighboring Pakistan as it had never been a sport among Afghans. However, cricket gained popularity among Afghans who played it while living in Pakistan for over four decades. Most of the early Afghanistan national cricket team members grew up in Peshawar, Pakistan's northwestern city.