New Delhi, September 15 (Daily Kiran) : Afghanistan faced a disappointing defeat against India, losing by seven wickets in the second T20 match held at Arun Jaitley Stadium on September 15. Following the series loss, captain Ibrahim Zadran acknowledged the team’s failure to address batting deficiencies that had already cost them in the first T20 encounter.
In Tuesday’s match, Afghanistan struggled during the powerplay, managing only 159 runs for eight wickets. India swiftly chased down the target in just 14.5 overs.
Zadran noted that the team had discussed the need for a more aggressive approach after the first match. However, they were unable to implement those strategies effectively. “We certainly had to struggle again. We did not achieve what we wanted, but as a group, we thought about how to improve and maintain the right attitude in international cricket, especially against strong teams. Yes, I would say we did not play well in the powerplay,” he said.
He credited India’s bowlers for applying pressure early on, which hindered Afghanistan’s ability to build momentum. “We will think about improving in that area, and I am confident we can compete against the biggest teams in international cricket,” he added.
Zadran also mentioned that the team aimed to score above 200 runs, moving beyond the 150-160 range, but failed to show the aggressive intent needed. “We thought about how to push our score past 200. If you score 60 runs in the powerplay with the right intent, that’s fine, but we need to play with the intent to score over 200. Unfortunately, we did not implement that,” he stated.
He expressed optimism about future matches, saying, “I am confident that if we want to beat the biggest teams internationally, we will improve in this regard. But I must say, this was only our second match this year. We haven’t had many opportunities to play, so we will reflect on this.”
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