Jonathan Trott first kicked a bag in the dressing room. He then signaled to Afghanistan to slow the game down. Rashid Khan had his hands on his head at various moments in the chase. Mohammad Nabi had a constant smile on his face.
But the one moment that encapsulated the emotionally-charged night in Kingstown was Naveen-ul-Haq running off after bowling out Bangladesh. That sealed Afghanistan’s maiden spot in the semi-final of any men’s senior World Cup.
In a match that was start-stop owing to multiple rain interventions, Afghanistan – led by four-fors from Naveen and Rashid Khan – edged out Bangladesh by a mere eight runs and in the process, also knocked Australia out of the T20 World Cup 2024.
Three teams were in contention for one semi-final spot from Group 1 of Super Eight, and the rain only added to the drama. For the best part of the last hour, a cat-and-mouse game went on, with Bangladesh edging Afghanistan out on the DLS par scores, only for the latter to come back to snatch back the advantage.
Litton Das, with a best of 36 before Monday, stayed through it all, but couldn’t take Bangladesh over the line with his first fifty of the tournament. Rashid and Co. danced their hearts out after knocking two teams with a single blow, and the celebrations are likely to go on for longer.