Afghanistan’s Asia Cup Journey Ends Early; Trott Sees Setback as Opportunity
Afghanistan’s campaign in the ongoing Asia Cup has come to an abrupt end, a disappointing outcome for a team that was considered a strong contender to advance beyond the group stage. Successive defeats to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka sealed their fate, cutting short their aspirations in the tournament.
Sri Lanka secured their place in the Super 4s with a convincing six-wicket victory over Afghanistan in the final Group B encounter. This result simultaneously confirmed Bangladesh’s progression, while Afghanistan faced an early exit despite a valiant effort led by Mohammad Nabi’s explosive 60 off 22 balls. Nabi’s innings had lifted Afghanistan from a precarious position to a competitive total of 169/8, but ultimately proved insufficient.
Head coach Jonathon Trott expressed his disappointment, stating, “It was very disappointing and a hard one to swallow. We thought we were in a good position, believing 170 after Nabi’s heroics was a good total. However, their batters played rather well, and we sort of aided them with our bowling and fielding.”
Trott further elaborated on the team’s shortcomings, highlighting their struggles in the powerplay. “We didn’t start well in the power play with our bowling, which gave them a leg up. We just weren’t at the races and made too many basic errors in batting, bowling, and in the field. You can’t win cricket games, especially in tournaments like this, with such errors,” he told reporters after the game.
Acknowledging the team’s high ambitions, Trott emphasized the need for introspection and improvement. “We came here with huge ambitions, and I was very ambitious about what we could achieve. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to do that, and we need to figure out why.”
Looking ahead, Trott sees the setback as a potential catalyst for growth. “We have a lot of T20 cricket coming up, including the World Cup in February. All the coaches, including myself, and all the players need to think long and hard about where we went wrong and how we need to get better. Sometimes these setbacks can help us regroup and ensure we don’t make the same mistakes in the future.”
Trott also noted the absence of Naveen-ul-Haq, who was sidelined due to injury, as a potential factor. “Potentially, yes (we missed the service of a pace bowler). Unfortunately, we missed Naveen; if he had been fit, it would have been a completely different kettle of fish. This is certainly something to look at, and we need to ensure we have the right stock of bowlers.”
Meanwhile, Sri Lankan player Kusal Mendis shared insights into their strategy against Afghanistan’s spin-heavy attack. “Actually, from the beginning, we knew they would bowl a lot of spin overs. So, Kusal (Perera) and I mostly talked about batting normally for the first 12 overs. After that, Kusal actually got some runs. So, we always went at about eight or nine runs an over. That made it very easy in the middle.”
Mendis explained their approach to targeting specific bowlers and capitalizing on pace overs. “Actually we know they often rely on spin. I tried to stretch the game as long as possible in the middle, meaning to take it to the last over because, as I said, they definitely have to bowl two pace overs. So, I was looking for a big over from the spinners there… And honestly, if you look at their spin attack, they have good spinners,” he concluded.
Disclaimer: This news article is based on publicly available information and may be subject to updates.
