The Pakistan cricket legend Shoaib Akhtar expressed great joy after Afghanistan’s thrilling win against England in the Champions Trophy on February 26. The former pace bowler congratulated the Afghan team on social media and disclosed a special conversation he had with all-rounder Gulbadin Naib before the match. Akhtar explained how, in a prior discussion with Naib, he instilled courage in the boy against England for whoever whipped against Australia-the conversations that seemed to ignite the fighting spirit in Afghanistan.
In this humdinger, with the tonally-deficient phrases of the commentariat, Afghanistan’s improbable but nonetheless historic 8-run victory over the defending champions no doubt relegated England to non-existent status in the semi-final race. Once again, through an unabridged video message posted on his social media account, Shoaib Akhtar lauded Afghanistan’s fight and applauded the success of their maiden Champions Trophy victory.
Congratulations Afghanistan, we are very happy with you! I remember telling Gulbadin, ‘Please beat England.’ He told me, ‘Do not worry, brother. We shall not spare them.’ I told him, ‘Do not spare Australia either.’ It was in Dubai that I told Gulbadin you could do anything for the win,” Akhtar said.
“You’ve made Afghanistan really proud today. Now you have grown a bit. You have become mature enough to know how to play cricket. You’ve slayed a big team. Enjoy the day, but do not forget that you are here to play beyond the semis!” he said.
Winning the toss, Afghanistan batted first and put a credible total of 325 for seven in 50 overs, a feat made specifically powerful by a record knock off 177 by opener Ibrahim Zadran off 146 balls. His innings paved the way for setting up a healthy total for the Afghan side.
England battled fiercely but finally came up short, knocked out for 317 in 49.5 overs. Star with the ball, Azmatullah Omarzai came up with numbers of 5/58 and a match-winning performance to guarantee Afghanistan reached the goal.
England now out, the Group A semi-final race is among South Africa, Afghanistan, and Australia. Afghanistan, with one victory from two games and a net run rate of 0.160, moved to third in the group standings after their triumph. Their next game will decide if they can claim a legendary semifinal berth.
Download the CricInformer app
Take CricInformer with you. Get our app for cricket news and updates on your phone.