Afghanistan defeated Australia in their second Super 8 game of the T20 World Cup 2024 by 21 runs, marking their first win against the Kangaroos in international cricket.
The Rashid Khan led team is overjoyed over the prospect of winning against Australia but their captain has raised a valid question regarding Cricket Australia’s (CA) unwillingness to play bilaterally against Afghanistan.
"If we play in the World Cup, why don't we play in bilateral series? I think we're happy to play against the best side. We learn from them. We get better day by day. But that's the only thing I can say,” Rashid stated during the post-match conference.
Rashid also relayed his personal experience of playing in Australia during the Big Bash League (BBL) saying that he received love and support in abundance during his time in Australia.
"Whenever I go to Australia for Big Bash, I think I have got so much love and support from the fans there. They have given me so much love. In the 2022 T20 World Cup, when we were playing in Adelaide against Australia, I got more support than them. And that was so satisfying."
Back in 2021, CA had cancelled a one-off Test against Afghanistan scheduled to be played in Australia including a three-match ODI series scheduled for 2023 supposedly due to the political unrest and crisis in Afghanistan.
However, the board had no issues with playing against Afghanistan in ICC events including the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia and the Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.
Rashid also admitted that there is nothing the cricketers can do in these matters, "We sportsmen only think about the cricket. Everyone is saying sports bring the nation together and bring everyone together. So, for me, we're always happy to play against any side, and that's the only way where our cricket can improve day by day.
"Some things which are not under the control of anyone in cricket, and that's something we can't do anything about it. Wish we could do something, and wish that was a kind of solution for it, we would have been happy, but I don't know what's the solution," he concluded.
- Rashid Khan
