New Delhi: Afghanistan have firmly established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in international cricket, their recent exploits being heading into their maiden T20 World Cup semifinal by stunning the likes of Australia and New Zealand. They have literally shown what the nerves of steel actually look like and they certainly deserve all the praise heaped onto them for rising from the ashes to make a name for themselves on a global stage.
Once considered as minnows and underdogs in world cricket, Afghanistan started turning the tables with heroics in the ODI World Cup 2023, and boy… the juggernaut hasn’t yet stopped. Stunning England in Delhi to script probably the first upset of world cricket, they announced themselves to the world with an Englishmen plotting it all – Jonathan Trott, the former England batter.
He continues to be the head coach of a rampant Afghan side that registered their fifth win in the ongoing event, surpassing their record of four wins which they bagged in the 2016 T20 World Cup. With the face of Afghanistan cricket Rashid Khan helming the captaincy duties, they have barged into the semis of the marquee event and will be facing South Africa on Wednesday for a ticket to the final.
The Indian connection
Nonetheless, talking about their achievements and their grit and passion towards the game would never end but it is highly noteworthy that India had a crucial role to play in picking up the standards of Afghanistan cricket and giving them a stage from where they can take off to go all the way up. Well… as it turns out, the helping hand has proven its worth.
When Afghanistan was going through a war-torn state with the nation in turmoil due to terrorism and the government in disbalance, cricket found its own path as mentioned earlier – through passion. For a country that was sharply divided along ethnic lines, the cricket team turned out to be a unifier. No matter how ironic it gets while stating this, the war in Afghanistan contributed to the rise of Afghan cricket.
The Afghanistan veterans like Mohammad Nabi, Mohammad Shehzad, and former skipper Asghar Stanikzai honed their skills at refugee camps across the border in Peshawar, Pakistan, after being forced out of their homes. The war situation clearly ruled out any possibility of Afghanistan hosting an international cricket match and rather sought a place elsewhere to practice for and play matches.
BCCI provides infrastructure and training support
In 2015, the BCCI offered the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida as a temporary “home ground” to the team. The BCCI, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), and the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority signed an MoU making the city their “home” where their players trained, practiced, and played their “home” international matches.
The Afghans even hosted a three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Dehradun. Even Lucknow opened its doors for Afghanistan to lend them facilities at the ultra-modern Ekana Cricket Stadium, which was one of the venues for the ODI World Cup 2023. They played several practice matches in some other Indian cities, including Surat.
In 2014, the Indian government had approved the grant of $1 million for the construction of a cricket stadium in Afghanistan’s southern province of Kandahar. The funding was granted under the Indian government’s Small Development Project Scheme for the stadium that came up in Aino Mina, a northern suburb of Kandahar city, on land donated to the Afghanistan Cricket Board in 2012.
Indian coaches share invaluable experience with Afghans
Former Indian players Lalchand Rajput and Manoj Prabhakar have coached the Afghanistan team, the latter as bowling coach. Meanwhile, Ajay Jadeja was the mentor for them in the ODI World Cup 2023. The likes of Umesh Patwal and Monty Desai have been associated with Afghanistan over the years as their batting coaches. It was reported that the Indian coaches were providing their valuable lessons to Afghanistan free of cost.
In an interview, Rajput said how the BCCI, the Indian government, and former Indian cricketers have made a significant contribution to Afghanistan cricket. Some of the Afghanistan players who were in the ODI World Cup 2023 squad were part of the group that was trained under Rajput.
“Present captain Hashmat Shahidi, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Najibullah Zadran, and Rahmat Shah, etc. were with me when I was the coach. I handpicked Mujeeb, and Naveen-ul-Haq from the under-19 category, after realising that they had lots of talent,” Rajput said
The IPL exposure
When Afghanistan were about to debut in Tests, taking on India, the BCCI had invited then-Afghanistan president Ashraf Ghani to watch the team play its first Test match. This was an attempt to further strengthen the relations between the two countries and Ghani even supported India’s role in nurturing Afghanistan players. As Rashid made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut in 2017, after his successful performance in the next edition, Ghani tweeted about the same, appreciating India for their efforts.
Afghans take absolute pride in our hero, Rashid Khan. I am also thankful to our Indian friends for giving our players a platform to show their skills. Rashid reminds us whats best about Afg. He remains an asset to the cricketing world. No we are not giving him away. @narendramodi
— Ashraf Ghani (@ashrafghani) May 25, 2018
The duo of Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan brought tonnes of experience back home from the IPL for budding cricketers and those already playing the game, giving them a hint of what cricket is actually out there. This brought new Afghan talents like Naveen, Noor Ahmad, and Mujeeb into the spotlight as they shone during their stint in the IPL and announced themselves on the world stage.
The Afghans are now considered a crucial part of any setup for their gritty performances varying from the explosive batting of Rahmanullah Gurbaz to the lethal pace of Fazalhaq Farooqui.
Afghanistan’s rise in cricket is a thing of beauty and it is certainly a joy forever to watch them play their heart out. When the nation was in turmoil, India played a major part in lending them a helping hand. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
