The Arnos Vale Ground in St Vincent and the streets in Afghanistan burts into celebrations on Tuesday (IST) when the Afghans made a historic entry into the T20 World Cup semifinals with a thrilling win over Bangladesh, which also knocked Australia out of the tournament.
Chasing Bangladesh's below-par 115 for 5, Bangladesh continued to slip in rainy Kingstown that saw the target getting revised to 114 in 14 overs amid multiple rain interruptions that forced players on and off the ground.
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Clouds relented enough to allow a result, which turned out to be a historic one.
As soon as Naveen-ul-Haq took the final Bangladesh wicket, Afghanistan players on the ground and in the dugout couldn't hold back their tears. Similar scenes were unfolding in the stands, as shown in a Star Sports video clip, showcasing the celebrations after the match.
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Similar scenes were witnessed in Afghanistan, where the fans came out on the streets to celebrate their team's famous victory.
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Afghanistan opted to bat first in a match that they had to win to progress in the tournament, but their batsmen found themselves tied up by disciplined Bangladesh bowlers despite having wickets in hand.
The usually free-flowing opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz played an uncharactersically slow knock of 43 off 55 balls, and it was only because of skipper Rashid Khans's 10-ball 19 out in the end that the Afghans could go past 110. Leg-spinner Rishad Hossain stood out for Bangladesh with his spell of 3 for 26.
In response, Bangladesh never got going despite Litton Das (54 off 49 balls) holding forte at one end. But the procession of batsman didn't stop at his opposite end as Afghanistan kept chipping at the wickets, led by skipper Rashid's 4 for 23 and Naveen's equally impressive 4 for 26.
Afghanistan will now face South Africa in the first semifinal, while India will be up against defending champions England.
