September 10, 2019 · 8:50 am
↓ Jump to Comments

Afghan Mountain Men bury the Bangla Deltaic Men

Result
Only Test, Afghanistan tour of Bangladesh at Chattogram, Sep 5-9 2019

Mohammed Isam, in ESPNcricnof,  9 September 2019, .”Afghanistan showcase benefits of long-term planning and fortitude,”  ,,, https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/27579972/afghanistan-showcase-benefits-long-term-planning-fortitude

If a team has just performed poorly at a World Cup, a structural overhaul of some kind is usually in order. With Afghanistan, there was a sudden change in captaincy just prior to the event, which hadn’t gone down well with some of the senior players. But, as they crashed out after losing all their nine games, other issues came to the fore, and even the players’ temperament was called into question. Changes were inevitable. In the period since, the ACB handed the captaincy reins to Rashid Khan, and when Phil Simmons left as head coach, they put Andy Moles, the chief selector, in his place on a temporary basis.

While Moles’ appointment highlighted the lack of options, Afghanistan have shown over the years that they tend to make the best of whatever resources they have. In fact, their ability to compete despite limited resources is what endears them to the neutral, besides lending more weight to wins over higher-ranked teams.

Their 224-run win over Bangladesh in the one-off Test, in their first match since the World Cup, has that wonderful glow. Rashid, one of the best bowlers in the world, took 11 wickets in the match and scored a crucial half-century, in his first match as captain. Rahmat Shah struck the team’s first-ever Test hundred, Asghar Afghan made two half-centuries, and Mohammad Nabi took crucial wickets.

But this victory didn’t just come because of them. Ibrahim Zadran, Afsar Zazai, Zahir Khan and Qais Ahmed also chipped in with handy contributions. Afghanistan had depth in their talent pool, and it showed how well they had planned, and prepared.

Afghanistan A’s tour of Bangladesh in July made it better. They had dominated that series, winning the unofficial Test series 1-0, and then rain deprived them of the one-day series triumph, with Bangladesh A salvaging a 2-2 draw in the five-match series. Ibrahim Zadran was the standout performer then, averaging 96.40 in the seven matches, hitting a century and three fifties. Qais, the legspinner, took 15 wickets including ten in the first unofficial ‘Test’ that they won convincingly. Of the 19 players who toured then, four played the Test in Chattogram. Another six players are in the T20I side that will take part in the tri-series in a few days.

Now take Afsar Zazai, the wicketkeeper-batsman. He didn’t score many runs but left Bangladesh with a better understanding of their opponents and pitches. When he saw no grass on the Chattogram pitch, he could even tell his seniors what the home side was planning.

Nabi, who announced his retirement during the Test, said that his faith in this crop of youngsters was the reason behind his decision to leave the format. He said that he has done his bit to achieve the Test status, and now wants the youngsters to build on it.

“It is a great feeling [to win the Test match] because we are new in this format,” Nabi said. “We have won two out of three Tests. It shows our domestic structure is strong. The way the youngsters adjusted to the conditions, it was brilliant. It is a bright future for the youngsters.

“For the last 15 years, I have served Afghanistan. It was my dream to play Test cricket. We worked hard towards it. We achieved this target in the last seven to eight years. We won the Intercontinental Cup twice and once were runners-up, which helped us gain the Test status. I am really happy to be part of that long journey for Afghanistan. I am leaving Tests because I believe the youngsters have a bright future in Tests. I want to focus on ODIs and T20s, and Insha Allah I will try to keep my body fit for those formats.”

Nabi said that the Test win wasn’t just built on potential, but hard work in the camps – in Abu Dhabi and in Chattogram – over the last month. He said that in someone like Ibrahim, he saw the ability to tackle Test cricket. “We had our preparation camp in Abu Dhabi where we spent five days in 46-47 degrees, so it was nice to come here in better weather. We adjusted to these conditions, and we prepared really well for this game. It reflected on how we batted and bowled.

“Our batsmen put up a good total in the first innings, and then I must congratulate young Ibrahim for his performance. He proved that he has the ability and talent to play for the national team.”

Some of the more senior Afghanistan players, like Rahmat on the first day, also credited the Intercontinental Cup as one of the foundations of their preparedness for Test cricket. But as Zazai said after the fourth day’s play, they are more known for their white-ball exploits, so winning this game was far more important for them in that regard.

“It would mean a lot, to be honest. The people know that our players are good enough for white-ball cricket, but we don’t have that much experience in Test cricket,” Zazai said. “So in this Test and the last one against Ireland, we showed we can play Test cricket as well.

“It means more than T20 and ODI for us. We discussed in the dressing room that this is an important game for us, to prove in this level.”

They didn’t just prove that they have a group of competent cricketers. They proved they were mentally prepared too. After all, they have just conquered tough conditions and opponents away from home in just their third Test.

****  ****

ALSO READ: Nabi backs Rashid, blames last-minute captaincy changes for World Cup debacle

  Rashid Khan sets off on a celebratory run, with Afsar Zazai in pursuit, after the last wicket BCB

PLUS Mohammed Isam: “Rashid bags 11 as Afghanistan use small window to seal big win”

 

Afghanistan overcame the elements that separated them from a remarkable Test victory over Bangladesh and one of cricket’s great heartbreaks. After the umpires gave them 18.3 overs to bowl following a third rain break, Rashid Khantook three of the four wickets to fall, as they won the one-off Test by 224 runs. With around an hour left to play, Zahir Khan had Shakib Al Hasan caught behind off the first ball in the final session after they made a second restart. Shakib tried a cut shot to a wide delivery, perhaps unnecessary at a time when survival was the only option.

Rashid picked up his fourth wicket by trapping Mehidy Hasan lbw, before completing his ten-wicket haul with the wicket of Taijul. He wanted to review the umpire’s decision, as there seemed to be a bit of bat involved, but was told by non-striker Soumya Sarkar that there were none left; Mehidy had used up the last one on his lbw decision.

Taijul’s wicket made Rashid the first cricketer to take a 10-wicket haul and score a fifty on his captaincy debut. Overall, he is the third captain to do the double, following Imran Khan and Alan Border.

Quite appropriately, Rashid took the final wicket to fall, Sarkar caught at short leg. In front of mostly empty stands, they celebrated by running around the ground, and then gave some of the Afghans who turned up, a victory lap.

Afghanistan must also not forget to thank the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium’s groundstaff (and drainage system) for their relentless work throughout the fifth day, though. After rain wiped out the first three hours of play, the umpires got the players out at 1pm, only for the rain to return within seven minutes. It came down for another couple of hours before the groundstaff ensured play was possible at 4:20pm despite the dark clouds around.

But it was not just Rashid or the groundstaff that gave them this win. It is an all-round performance from Afghanistan that they churned out over the five days. Rahmat Shah’s historic first Test century, Asghar Afghan’s twin fifties, as well as contributions from debutants Ibrahim Zadran and Zahir Khan ripped the heart out of a home side which failed to turn up all game

SCORECARD IN DETAIL

Afghanistan won by 224 runs
PLAYER OF THE MATCH
Rashid Khan

Rashid KhanAfghanistan

Leave a comment

Filed under Afghanistan cricket, Bangladesh cricket, child of empire, cricket and life, performance, player selections, tower of strength

Leave a Reply

%d bloggers like this: