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Former Indian cricketer and ex-Afghanistan head coach, Lalchand Rajput, has heaped praise on Rashid Khan and his teammates for their impressive journey to the semifinals of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and Caribbean.
The Afghanistan Cricket Team is poised to face South Africa in the first semifinal of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 on Thursday, June 27, at the Brian Lara Cricket Stadium in Trinidad & Tobago.
My gut feeling says Afghanistan will win the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 says Lalchand Rajput
Before the SA vs AFG semifinal showdown, Rajput expressed confidence that Afghanistan has the potential to defeat South Africa and emerge as champions of the T20 World Cup 2024, despite not mentioning his own country’s team, India.
He highlighted Afghanistan’s strong spin bowling arsenal and noted that their pace bowlers have also been performing exceptionally well. Rajput emphasized that the spin-friendly conditions at Trinidad’s slower pitch could play to Rashid Khan and Afghanistan’s advantage in their semifinal encounter against South Africa.
Lalchand Rajput said by Times of India: “My gut feeling says that we’ll have a new T20 World Cup winner this time, and it will be Afghanistan. If the wicket in Trinidad for the first semifinal is slow, I would rate them as favourites to win against South Africa as they have a fabulous spin attack and the Proteas can be vulnerable against quality spin.”
Commending Afghanistan’s impressive display in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024, Rajput reflected on his pre-tournament forecast regarding their ability to compete with top-tier teams.
The former Indian coach, who led the team to victory in the 2007 World Cup, reiterated his earlier prediction that Afghanistan had the capability to surprise stronger opponents. He highlighted their victories over New Zealand and Australia as clear demonstrations of their prowess in the tournament.
Lalchand Rajput said Afghanistan improved massively over the years
Rajput reflected on Afghanistan’s journey, noting their improvement from close finishes in the ODI World Cup 2023 to their current impressive performances in the T20 World Cup 2024. He praised their ability to close out matches with determination and highlighted the positive body language displayed by Afghan players on slow, turning pitches.
Rajput emphasized Afghanistan’s formidable bowling attack, capable of defending any total their batsmen set. He cautioned teams like India, England, and South Africa to be cautious of Afghanistan in the knockout stages of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
Rajput further said, “Before this T20 World Cup began, I had predicted that Afghanistan would upset big teams. They narrowly missed out on a few wins in the 50-over World Cup in India last year, failing to close games out. However, this year, they’re playing brilliantly. You can see the intent in their body language. They just want to do well. On the slow, turning wickets of the West Indies, their brilliant bowling is good enough to defend whatever scores their batters put up.”
In conclusion, the former Indian cricketer praised Afghanistan’s head coach Jonathan Trott and bowling coach Dwayne Bravo for their exceptional work, noting significant improvements over the years. He highlighted that Afghanistan’s reliance on spinners has evolved, now complemented by the talents of fast bowlers like Naveen-ul-Haq and Fazalhaq Farooqi, while also acknowledging the team’s improved batting performances.
