Afghanistan advanced to their first-ever T20 World Cup semi-final after completing a dramatic eight-run victory over Bangladesh in a rain-affected clash at the Arnos Vale Stadium in St Vincent on Monday.
Defending a modest total of 115/5 on a bowler-friendly surface, Afghan captain Rashid Khan belied three rain stoppages, a slippery ball and a revised target of 114 off 19 overs to take four for 23 as Bangladesh, who themselves harboured faint hopes of making the last four, were dismissed for 105 off 17.5 overs.
An unbeaten 54 from opener Litton Das was threatening to take Bangladesh to victory and earn Australia the last semi-final spot on net run-rate.
But pacer Naveen ul Haq claimed the last two wickets – Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman – off consecutive deliveries in the penultimate over of the match to trigger delirious Afghan celebrations.
Australia out
With India defeating Australia earlier in the day and advancing to the second semi-final against England in Guyana on Thursday, this result assured the Afghans of second spot in the group and eliminated the Aussies together with the Bangladeshis.
Khan said after the match: "It's a dream for us to be in the semi-finals. The way we started the tournament, the belief came when we beat New Zealand. It's unbelievable.
“The only guy who put us in the semi-finals was Brian Lara and we proved him right. When we met him at a welcome party, I told him we won't let you down. We thought 130-135 was a good score but we fell 15 runs short.”
Afghanistan will now face South Africa in the first semi-final in Trinidad on Wednesday.
AFP