Afghanistan’s Epic Run: From Underdogs to T20 World Cup Semi-Finalists

The Afghanistan national cricket team lost to South Africa in the semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2024, ending their journey in the tournament.

The match was held at Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, West Indies.

Winning the toss, Afghanistan’s skipper Rashid Khan chose to bat first. The South African bowlers dominated the first innings, sending the entire Afghan team back to the dressing room after making only 56 runs in over 11 overs.

South Africa’s national team chased the easy target in the ninth over of the match, claiming a 9-wicket victory and qualifying for the final of a cricket world cup for the first time in their history.

Cricket analysts from across the world believe that Afghanistan has not lost in spirit, as they played in their maiden world cup semi-final, leaving behind world champions like Australia, Pakistan, and West Indies.

Afghanistan beat big teams like New Zealand and Australia in the tournament which also were the Afghan team’s first victories against the two oppositions.

With only two games left in the competition, Afghan pacer Fazal Haq Farooqi is the leading wicket-taker of the tournament with 17 wickets, the most ever taken in a T20 World Cup.

Afghanistan’s aggressive opener, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, is also leading the scorers with his 280 runs in this world cup.

He will likely keep the top spot until the end of the tournament, as the following four batters from Australia, West Indies, Afghanistan, and the USA have all been eliminated from the competition.

This is considered the biggest achievement in Afghan cricket history, as the national team made it to the semi-final of the mega international tournament.

The Blue Tigers also finished sixth in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, just one victory away from the semi-final.