Still time to impress, says Afghanistan captain

Muhammad Nabi admits side never recovered after losing early wickets.

CANBERRA: Afghanistan captain Muhammad Nabi admitted his side never recovered from being 3-3 in their World Cup loss to Bangladesh on Wednesday as their debut in the tournament turned sour. But he insisted there was still time for Afghanistan to impress at the showpiece event.

Afghanistan lost by 105 runs after being dismissed for 162 in pursuit of a 268-run target at Canberra’s Manuka Oval, with Nabi at least having the consolation of being his team’s top scorer with 44.

“We bowled really well in the first 35 overs but then Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakibal Hasan batted well for them and took the total to 260,” said Nabi. “We then lost those three early wickets when we batted. It wasn’t a good start to the tournament but hopefully we can get better in the next game.”

That game will be against fellow minnows Scotland in Dunedin on Sunday, while Bangladesh head for Brisbane and clash with co-hosts Australia on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan coach Andy Moles lamented his team didn’t give a true representation of the way they play their cricket. “We genuinely thought this was a game we could win,” Moles told reporters. “I still believe that if we had applied ourselves better, then we would have given a better account.”

However, the coach admitted that their opponents had more experience and that his players had not been disgraced. “The Bangladesh boys have got far more experience than us,” he added. “We haven’t disgraced ourselves, but that wasn’t a true reflection on the work we do in preparation and the way we play our cricket.” 

Published in The Express Tribune, February 19^th,  2015.

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