Perhaps it was the stillness of Glenn Maxwell that did for Afghanistan. This is a side whose identity is characterised by an inability to keep still. It’s there in the chaotic motions of their attack: Rashid Khan’s whirlwind mastery, Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s wicked fingers, Noor Ahmad’s precocious left-arm tricks and Naveen-ul-Haq’s own take on Jasprit Bumrah.
It’s there in the endurance of Mohammad Nabi, who played for Afghanistan against Essex’s seconds at Billericay in 2006 and then four years later at their first World Cup. It’s there in how they’re always abroad, having never actually played an international at home. It’s there in the clips of them dancing away after beating Pakistan, with even their poker-faced coach, Jonathan Trott, forced into busting a move.
