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Follow UsWhat do you ask from a T20 game?
‘Entertainment, entertainment and entertainment.’
If that is your boat, the clash between Afghanistan and Bangladesh is sailor-made for you. It had everything you could have asked for in a rivalry that you were certainly not expecting.
There was rain.
Then, there were two crucial points, and three teams — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Australia — were racing for that one spot.
If not for these factors, the added drama of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method would have caused havoc.
Even if you somehow saw past all of those factors, there were bats, bodies, and temper flying in equal intervals to setup what was an ultimate climax to possibly the most entertaining clash of the T20 World Cup history.
All of this started when Australia lost their clash against India. It opened up a box of opportunities for both Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Rashid Khan’s men needed a win, and Najmul Hossain Shanto’s men needed to win within a margin to take them past Afghanistan and Australia.
That was exactly what brewed in the backdrop of this clash. All the drama really started only in the 16th over of the first innings when a blunder from Rishad Hossain gave Rahmanullah Gurbaz a chance. The leg spinner threw it at the wrong end, with both the Afghan batters stranded at the striker’s end.
It intensified when Rashid wanted the strike later on in the game, and that’s when you could clearly see the leg spinner agitated, with the 25-year-old hurling his bat in the direction of Karim Janat for not attempting a double. Moments later, Rashid proved why he wanted that double so badly with a monstrous six, taking their total to 115/5.
Bangladesh’s equation then became clear. They needed to chase the total down in 12.1 overs or 12.5 overs, depending on whether they could muscle a six after the scores were levelled. For Afghanistan, it was as black and white as it could get, with only a win could see them through to the next stage. But caught up in between these two teams’ desires was Australia, who silently hoped and prayed for a Bangladesh win, but only if they did it in the 14th over.
The desperation was clearly all over Bangladesh batters, who came charging at the total, with Litton Das smashing a four and a six in the first over. It clearly put Afghanistan under the pump. But it also pumped the adrenaline (tons of them) into their bodies. Naveen-ul-Haq’s pump-fist celebration was a testimonial to that.
That’s when more entertainment was peppered across the field: a rain break. Bangladesh were cruising at 31/2, but for a match to have a result under the DLS method, it needs at least five overs being bowled in the second innings. As Afghanistan walked away, they were more than happy to drip in the heavy rain, as it all but confirmed their qualification.
Then came a new turn in the story — of course, the restart. It made conditions favourable for Afghanistan while making it tougher for Bangladesh. The dampness of the wicket assisted the Afghan spinners, who now would only have to target the stumps, as inconsistent bounce sprung up a new equation.
That’s how Rashid removed Soumya Sarkar with a delivery that skidded past his bat. But then Bangladesh quickly returned back into the clash thanks to Towhid Hridoy, who swung his bat to great use. However, he swung it too hard for his liking as the clash was now firmly in favour of Afghanistan.
Two bold overs from Bangladesh got the clash back before Rashid found a way like he always does. Out of nowhere, he forced a false shot from Mahmadullah, but the umpire did not budge. While Rashid was confident, the others around him weren’t too vocal, as it turned out to be the turning point of the clash.
But you forgot that wretched rain? And that DLS score that still sided with Bangladesh despite them losing wickets for fun? Didn't you? Those twins were back in action. That’s when Noor bowled three dots in a row, wrestling the DLS equation back in Afghanistan’s favour.
Now, Afghanistan were ahead by just two runs. Trott wanted his boys to slow it down. Gulbadin Naib took that very seriously, flailing himself down to the ground out of nowhere. He clutched his hamstring, and rolled a few times as everyone looked astonished. Afghan fielders were looking at each other, wondering what on earth had just happened.
The strongest man in the team had just thrown himself to the ground like Neymar Jr would do after every single tackle against him. Rashid was far from being pleased with his hand movements, suggesting Naib get up and continue with the game. But that’s when the rain’s intensity increased to a point where they had to go off the field.
Litton was enjoying every bit of it, imitating the bulky all-rounder’s fall. Rain’s interruption this time meant that Bangladesh were all but knocked out at this point.
Miraculously and magically, Naib was on his feet somehow, and guess what? He even became fit to bowl, ending Tanzim Hasan Sakib’s resistance. In the next over, Afghanistan were confident of a review against Litton, as Noor celebrappealed.
However, the umpire was far from impressed.
Moments later, Afghanistan found out why cricket is called a game of fine margins. Both of Noor’s hands were on his head; their bowling coach, Dwayne Bravo, shook his head as fervently as he could. It was almost like a royal rumble match happening, with all the chaos.
Just when Litton had owned the occasion and batted brilliantly with Taskin Ahmed came the last nail in the coffin.
12 runs, 12 balls.
But the rain returned.
It circled around the head of the Afghanistan bowlers as if to hurry them to bowl the over.
Bangladesh wanted it stretched, as they were ahead of the DLS rate by just one run. Naveen struck, and Taskin’s effort was valiant. Rain returned but this time Afghanistan were ahead, ahead by three runs. You had already seen bats and bodies fly; how about temper?
That’s when Naveen delivered the killer blow. With a field set up for the short ball, Naveen bluffed, bowling a pinpoint delivery on the stumps. Even before the umpire deemed it out, Naveen, his team, the support staff, 4.11 crores Afghans, and more cricket-loving fans were up on their feet celebrating.
At the start of the run chase, everything seemed to be against Afghans, but now nothing could keep them quiet as cricket echoed through the roof, from Kabul to Kandahar.
Wasn’t that enough entertainment for you? All packed in a clash that entailed for five hours?
That’s the beauty of cricket. It didn’t matter if you were a Bangladeshi fan, an Afghani fan, or an Australian fan; the game got you so hooked that you didn’t leave your television sets, even for once.
After all, low-scoring T20 World Cups are quite fun, aren’t they?
Oh, by the way, if you’ve not downloaded the Cricket.com app yet, you’re missing out — big time. Play Fantasy on Cricket.com NOW! Download the App here.
