Afghanistan’s historic win will have ripple effect, coach Trott says

Bengaluru — The landmark victory over Pakistan in the World Cup will cause a ripple effect in Afghan cricket and inspire future players, Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott said.

Afghan batters chased down the 283 target methodically, with a focus on singles and doubles to keep the pressure off, winning the match in Chennai by eight wickets with six balls to spare.

It was their second win in five games, and Afghanistan’s third-yet World Cup victory. It was also their first victory over neighbours Pakistan in eight ODI matches and the first World Cup win while chasing against a Test-playing nation.

“This will have a great ripple effect,” Trott told reporters. “I want to make sure that [the players] … pass it on and remember that game in Chennai when we chased on 283 against Pakistan.”

The Englishman called the 130-run opening partnership put on by Rehmanullah Gurbaz (65) and Ibrahim Zadran (87) the “turning point” and praised Rahmat Shah, who played through severe cramps to help steady the game when the openers fell.

“You could easily get a bit nervous or panicky but the shot he played there to hit a straight six sort of broke the back of the game,” Trott said of Shah, who scored an unbeaten 77, 45 of which came from ones and twos.

This win, with the October 15 triumph over defending champions England, propelled Afghanistan from the bottom of the table to sixth place. They face ninth-place Sri Lanka on Monday.

“I will say to the players make sure you enjoy these victories but as soon as we [arrive in] Pune … take the confidence from the game and start looking forward to Sri Lanka,” Trott said.

Skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi was impressed with his team’s performance. “This win tastes nice,” he said. “The way we chased was very professional and the way we did that will help us going into our other games now.

“We always had belief and at the start of the tournament I told my team I wanted to make it a historic one for our country and our people,” Shahidi said. “We did that against England and now today against Pakistan.

“We are looking forward to playing positive cricket in our next games. Our bowling was very good, especially our spinners. We gave Noor a chance and trusted his talent.

“In this kind of big event, this is so big for me. I’m feeling very proud of myself and for my country,” the batter said.

“Gurbaz and I have put on a lot of good partnerships together. We have played together since we were 16, so we always have good communication.” 

Reuters