The Afghan cricket team, led superbly by Asghar Stanikzai, has won the World Cup qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe after convincingly defeating WI by seven wickets in the final.
Both the teams, however, are going home happy, as both teams have qualified for the 2019 WC in England and Wales. In direct contrast for Ireland, Scotland and the hosts Zimbabwe, there is nothing but heartbreak. All had their chances, but failed to take them.
After the initial group stages involving ten teams, divided in to two groups, the tournament really became exciting as the super sixes started.
The Super Sixes
The super sixes started with the favourites WI at the top with maximum four points. Scotland and the hosts Zimbabwe were joint second with three points. The Irish had two points while Afghanistan and UAE went with no points on the board.
Until this point the Afghans were the biggest flops of the event. They underperformed in the group stages and they needed help from Nepal to qualify for the Super Sixes. Even then they qualified only on the NRR count. As the Super Sixes began, their only chance was to win all their three fixtures and hope that the other results go in their favour.
WI versus Afghanistan (15th March): Afghanistan’s bid for WC qualification really began on this day. They were the clear underdogs against the mighty Windies, yet they upset al the pre match calculations to win by three wickets.
Batting first after winning the toss, the Windies immediately lost their big hitter Chris Gayle for only 1; bowled by the spinner Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman. And the Windies never recovered from this setback.
A number of their top order batsman got going but then threw it away. Young Mujeeb, just 16, produced a MOM effort taking 3/33. And he got excellent support from the more experienced spinners Nabi (2/43) and standing skipper Rashid Khan (1/31) as the WI finished at 197/8; a disappointing total.
(AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)
In reply, the Afghans lost their openers cheaply. But the No. 3 Rahmat Shat stood firm and his patient 68 ensured that there was no panic in the Afghan camp.
On the same day, Scotland thrashed UAE to take the pole position. Yet, while the Windies would recover from their setback to win the remaining two fixtures to ensure the top place in the Super Sixes; the Scottish bid would fade away with two successive defeats.
Zim versus UAE (22nd March)
The hosts went in to this match knowing that a win would take them through. For UAE, already assured of a sixth place finish, it was just an academic affair. Yet they won the match by three runs (in D/L method) as the experienced Zim side lost their nerves in the final stages.
Put into bat, the UAE innings was built around Rameez Shahzad’s 59 from 61 deliveries. There were useful contributions from others as the UAE side was heading for a 250+ score when the weather intervened. They scored 235/7 from 47.5 overs.
When the rain stopped, the target for the hosts was 230 from 40 overs. They started badly and slumped to 45/3 in no time. The loss of Brendon Taylor for 15 was a big blow. Yet, things looked well under control as experienced Sean Williams batted beautifully.
He got good support from Peter Moor and all rounder Sikandar Raza as Zim looked heading towards qualifications. But, the UAE bowlers stayed calm and took wickets at the vital sages. It was the dismissal of Williams, after a well made 80, in the final ball of the 37th over that sealed the fate of this match. The Zimbabwe tail-enders were simply not up-to the task. And they finished at 226/7.
I really felt sorry for the Zim fans. My memory went back to March 1994, when a narrow loss against Kenya had ended the tiger’s hope of WC qualification. On paper, Zimbabwe still remained in the hunt; a tie in the final Super Six match would take them through. But, watching the fans, one felt they were not expecting anything miraculous.
Ireland versus Afghanistan (23rd March)
Ireland went in to this match knowing that a victory or even an washout would be enough;. Zimbabwe’s slim hopes rested on a tie; and for the Afghans it was straightforward; win or nothing.
At the end, the Afghans won by five wickets with five balls to spare; but in reality it was much more straightforward than that. The spinners did their job in the first half of the match to restrict Ireland to 209/7.
Rashid Khan this time was the main performer; with 3/40. In reply, WK batsman Mohammad Shahzad blasted 54 from only 50 deliveries. The 86 run opening partnership in quick time provided the foundation required and although the Irish spinners Simi Singh and McBrine bowled well, they only delayed the inevitable.
The Afghan skipper Stanikzai led the final onslaught with 39* from 29 deliveries. Mohammad Shahzad was the MOM; but it was a fabulous team effort from the Afghan team that took them to the World Cup.
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