In the context of the ACC Emerging Teams Cup currently being played
in Singapore, Afghanistan's 28-run win over the India Under-23 team was
insignificant. The Indians still topped the group to move into the
semi-final, where they will take on United Arab Emirates on Friday. But
for Afghanistan, despite the fact that the result didn't help them from
exiting the event, the victory was perhaps their most important.
For the first time in their short cricketing history, Afghanistan
had recorded a win over a Test-playing nation, albeit an age-group side
of it, in any format.
The fact that Afghanistan was allowed to enter their main side
for the tournament while the Indians obeyed the age restriction was a
footnote in fine print that in no way took away the shine from this
emerging Asian cricketing nation.
The hero of the day for the Afghanistan was their skipper
Mohammad Nabi, who scored 25 runs with the bat and finished with figures
of 3/32 in a low scoring game. Batting first, Afghanistan scored 184
with Samiullah Shenwari scoring 43 off 44 balls. In reply, the Indians
succumbed to Nabi's off-spin. India were 156/9 at the end of 50 overs.
At the end of group games; India, Pakistan and Afghanistan all
finished with four points. But Afghanistan's poor run rate got them
eliminated.
Assessing potential
Speaking to The Indian Express after the win, Nabi said, "For us
it is a big win, beating India can only be a moral booster." Though,
there were no international players in the Indian side, Nabi and his men
were in awe of their young rivals. With most of the India under-23
players playing in the Indian Premier League, the Afghanistan players
had seen them on television and thus were keen to match their skills
against them.
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