Afghanistan bowed out of the marquee event with 4 wins from 9 matches.
Afghanistan’s victories in this World Cup came up against former champions such as England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. They also defeated Netherlands and were in a dominant position against Australia at one stage before Glenn Maxwell’s carnage blew them away.
On Friday (November 10), Afghanistan played their last league match versus South Africa in Ahmedabad to finish the campaign at sixth position, ahead of England, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Reflecting on their performance, former Pakistan captains Wasim Akram and Shoaib Malik opined that Afghanistan played better cricket than Babar Azam and Co in the showpiece tournament.
“Afghanistan played better cricket than us,” Malik said on A Sports, before adding that only India deserved to be in the semi-finals among the Asian teams.
“India is the only team from the sub-continent, who has qualified for the last four.
“In my opinion, if we are just sticking with this World Cup then yes Afghanistan have played better cricket than us,” he further stated.
Wasim endorsed Malik’s viewpoint and also claimed that the Pakistani players looked fatigued in this World Cup.
“Afghans looked stronger. Maybe, our boys looked fatigued because they were playing cricket continuously. Afghanistan cricketers looked better than Pakistan, there is no doubt,” said Akram.
Pakistan will play their last league match against England at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday (November 11).
In order to qualify for the semi-final, the Men in Green have a daunting task at their hands. Babar’s men need to beat England by at least 287 runs to eliminate New Zealand as the fourth semi-finalist on the basis of net run rate. If Pakistan bowl first, they have to chase down the target in less than five overs.