T20 World Cup 2024: Top 10 Memes from AFG vs BAN, Match 52

Afghanistan and Bangladesh faced each other in the final Super Eights match of the T20 World Cup 2024 at the Arnos Vale Ground in Kingstown, St Vincent on Tuesday, June 25. Rashid Khan called it correctly at the toss and chose to bat first. Afghanistan walked onto the field without making any changes in their playing mix. On the other hand, Bangladesh made two changes, bringing in Taskin Ahmed and Soumya Sarkar for Jaker Ali and Mahedi Hasan, respectively.

The match was critical because Afghanistan's chances to advance to the semi-finals were determined only if they won, while the Bengal Tigers had a slim chance of qualifying if they chased down the mark in 12.1 overs. Meanwhile, Australia pushed for Bangladesh to win to improve their chances of qualifying.

Afghanistan got off to a cautious start as both the openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran were playing the new ball well without taking any risks and playing calculated shots. The side managed to post 27 runs in six overs on a difficult track. Both Gurbaz and Zadran stitched a 59-run opening partnership. While Gurbaz walked back after scoring a 43, Zadran found himself in the dugout after scoring a 29 ball-18.

Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, and Mohammad Nabi all were dismissed without adding much to the tally. Skipper Khan provided the late flourish scoring a quick 19 runs off 10 balls as Afghanistan posted a total of 115 runs in the first innings.

As for Bangladesh, Rishad Hossain was the highest wicket-taker for his side in the first innings with three wickets to his name. Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed took one wicket each.

Also read: Gulbadin Naib pulls his hamstring with Bangladesh 2 run behind DLS par score

Afghanistan qualify for first ICC knockouts

As the Bangla Tigers came out to chase the target, the scenario was clear to chase down the target in 12.1 overs to enter the knockout stages. Opener Litton Das played an incredible unbeaten innings of 54 runs to give a glimmer of hope to his side. Apart from Das, no other Bangladeshi batter could manage to stay at the crease for long to build partnerships, and take their game through.

Following multiple climatic interruptions, the second innings was reduced to 19 overs, with Bangladesh facing a revised target of 114 runs. Towhid Hridoy smashed 14 runs, but it wasn't enough since the Afghan bowlers had different intentions.

Also read: Furious Jonathan Trott throws dustbin after Mohammad Nabi concedes consecutive boundaries

With nine required off the last eight deliveries, Naveen-ul-Haq bowled an unbelievable over, taking the final two wickets and leading Afghanistan to victory by eight runs via DLS. Naveen finished the match well on a personal front, taking a four-for. Additionally, Rashid also claimed four wickets, while taking some crucial wickets in the middle. With this win, Afghanistan will meet South Africa in the first semi-final on June 27 in Trinidad.

Here are the best memes from the game: