Cricket is not just about winning the matches. It is more about being in the game, fighting till the end and go back as a warrior. Of course, results hurt but that shouldn’t be the only thing we must look into.
Every single thing what Afghanistan did today is a win for them, for their team. They weren’t against a feeble team but the team that is one of the favourites to lift the trophy. A team that is completely a mismatch when we take the man-to-man comparison. Mismatch because of the difference in training. Mismatch because of the matches and the opponents they get to play.
Afghanistan not only had to fight India but also the mismanagement and the conflicts among the coaches and the selectors. Maybe, they converted all the pain and trouble to focus more on the game. Most of all, they were hammered in the last game by the hosts England and Rashid Khan was called overrated. A single bad day and people started to write him off. I mean who doesn’t have a bad day?
Still, people wait for an opportunity to write him off because he is successful. Coming back to the match, Afghanistan is the real winners. For pushing India to the backfoot, for taking the match super close. They were just two hits away from winning the match. They deserved to win but they are against one of the best teams in the world and the best bowler in the world. They aren’t called the best simply. India knows how to pull the match back and with some of the gems in the bowling attack they can go places. Maybe with better training and infrastructure, something like India’s Afghanistan can go places as well because these guys wear their hearts on their sleeves.
Congrats, Afghanistan for not giving up that easily and putting up a fight. You deserved the win today, but that doesn’t make you any less than your opponent. And You, Nabi. You are a champion.
Chin Up!
