T20 World Cup 2021 | Aim is to qualify for semi-finals and make Afghanistan proud, says Rashid Khan
Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan has stated that team's foremost aim is to qualify for the semi-finals at the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021 and make the country proud. Afghanistan has endured a tough time recently, with the recent Taliban takeover of the country, which has put their cricket in jeopardy.
Afghanistan had a fine start to the T20 World Cup 2021, as they thumped Scotland by 160 runs in their first Super 12s fixture in Sharjah on Monday. The have tough matches ahead, as they are placed alongside India, Pakistan, New Zealand alongside Scotland and Namibia in Group 2.
As for the team's premier spinner Rashid Khan, the ultimate goal lies in making it to the semi-finals and make the country proud.
"What is in our hand is to play the five games of this group stage and try to qualify to the semi-finals and make the country proud.We have only this thing in the mind that we're here for the World Cup and we're playing five games and we need to win three games,” he stated.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) will meet next month to discuss the future of the sport under the Taliban rule in Afghanistan. Australia has threatened to cancel the one-off Test versus Afghanistan scheduled next month, over Taliban's opposition to the women's sport. As per the ICC norms, the full-time members need to grant equal access for men's and women's sport. Afghanistan had got a Test status back in 2017.
Rashid put his primary focus on the ongoing tournament, which he feels is important for the team's fans, and stated that the external things lie beyond control.
"To be honest, at the moment, we don't have anything in mind. If we have so many things on our mind, that might affect our performance, and the fans will be upset when you don't perform as a team. we don't think about what's happening in the future. We don't think about what happened in the past. That is something which is not in our hands, that is not in our control." he said.
Afghanistan will take on Pakistan in Dubai on Thursday, October 28.