Afghanistan provided the first shock of the 2016 ICC World T20 as they defeated West Indies by 6 runs at the VCA Stadium, Nagpur. With this win, Afghanistan secured their first win of the Super 10 stage of the tournament.
Put into bat, the Afghans managed to put on 123/7 in their 20 overs, mainly thanks to an unbeaten 48 from Najibullah Zadran. The Afghanistani bowlers kept taking wickets at regular intervals and restricted the table toppers to just 117/8 during the chase.
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What the captains had to say
Afghanistan captain Asghar Stanikzai, as expected, was delighted with the win.
Speaking after the match, he said: “The victory feels very good and it was a very important win. We needed this win because we missed out on two chances. The guys did very well today. We were 15 runs short and we know that because we have played here before and we know the conditions.
“The guys bowled and fielded very well. We know that our team is good enough (at this level). It’s very good to beat the group toppers, especially in T20s, they (West Indies) are a dangerous team. It's a great win for us.”
Darren Sammy, on the other hand, mentioned that they will not lose much confidence despite the loss.
“We are disappointed but we are not gonna let this jump in our spirits. They played and we just have to find a way to chase down totals - three times we have made it a bit difficult,” the West Indian captain said.
Cricketers’ reactions
Anil Kumble hails Afghanistan’s achievement.
Ian Bishop ponders over West Indies’ loss.
Afghanistan, especially Hamid Hassan, impressed former Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson.
Michael Vaughan wants the ICC to re-think the format for future ICC tournaments.
Andrew Flintoff celebrating Afghanistan's win like England were playing!
James Anderson loved the vibe Afghanistan brought to the tournament.
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