From giant-slayers to world-beaters: Axar Patel makes sensational prediction for Rashid Khan's Afghanistan

India all-rounder Axar Patel praised the Afghanistan cricket team for their performance in the T20 World Cup 2024, acknowledging their hard work and dedication towards the sport. Axar Patel expressed confidence that Afghanistan will improve and find success in international cricket in the coming years.

Afghanistan kicked off their T20 World Cup campaign with a 125-run victory against Uganda in Guyana. The Rashid Khan-led team then defeated strong title contenders New Zealand in the second match. They beat Papua New Guinea in the next match to advance to the Super 8 stages of the ongoing ICC tournament.

Afghanistan suffered a 104-run defeat against the West Indies in their final group match. Their struggles continued as they faced a 47-run loss to India in their first Super 8 match at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Thursday, June 20. They must win their remaining two matches to stay in the race for the semifinals.

This Team Can Go Ahead - Axar Patel

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Axar Patel said that Afghanistan has the potential to improve significantly, adding that they can progress further in the coming years.

“As an opposition, I think this team can go ahead. I think in the coming years, I think this team will do better,” Axar said of Afghanistan," Axar said.

They Are Continuously Performing - Axar Patel

Axar Patel highlighted that every team in the Super 8s has earned their place through hard work. The left-arm spinner praised Afghanistan's talent across batting and bowling, noting that their batters are now playing a pivotal role alongside their historically strong bowling unit.

“So, I think everyone who has come to the Super 8 has come with their because of hard work. Everyone has defeated good teams and come to the Super 8. Even then I said that you can't say unpredictable. And as an opposition, the talent they have, as much as we see, as a batsman, bowling, earlier the bowling unit was so good, now the batsmen are also playing a very good role."

“And they are continuously performing. So, I think in the coming years, this team can do better and can move forward. They have that talent and hunger to do better and take Afghanistan forward.”

The Afghanistan team conceded 181 runs to the opposition team after losing the toss. Left-arm pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi provided an early breakthrough for his team by dismissing Rohit Sharma for 8 runs off 13 balls in the third over. Rashid Khan dismissed Rishabh Pant, who scored 20 off 11 balls, in the seventh over.

Suryakumar Yadav (53 off 28) and Hardik Pandya (32 off 24) helped the Indian team reach a competitive total of 181 runs in 20 overs. Rashid Khan picked up three wickets for 26 runs in four overs, while Fazalhaq Farooqi also claimed three wickets. The Afghan team was bowled out for 134 runs during the chase.

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