Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan stated that his side could have performed better in their T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final clash against South Africa at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad. The Afghans crashed out of the major tournament on Thursday following a 9-wicket loss against the Proteas in a one-sided contest. Afghanistan was bundled out for 56 in 11.5 overs after opting to bat first. Following that, South Africa secured their first-ever spot in an ICC event final by chasing down the target in 8.5 overs.

With the exception of Azmatullah Omarzai, none of the Afghan batters reached double figures. Notably, both opening batters, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, who had been expected to give a great start as well as do wonders against the South African bowler in the game, were unable to step up. 

Afghanistan's batting lineup collapsed for just 56 runs during the powerplay, mostly because of the explosive deliveries of Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, and Tabraiz Shamsi, showing the team's severe match inexperience. However, the Proteas overcame a seven-game losing streak in the ICC Cricket World Cup semifinals, which means they will now play England or India in a historic final. 

We might have done better but the conditions did not allow us to do what we wanted: Rashid Khan

Though Afghanistan suffered a devastating loss, Rashid believed that his team was prepared to defeat the world's top sides. He further said that one should keep their trust in themselves and try to get better. Rashid acknowledged that the Afghans missed Mujeeb Ur Rahman greatly. Meanwhile, Afghanistan went on to outclass New Zealand in the group stage to make it to the Super Eight fixture of the 2024 T20 World Cup. In addition to this, they then eliminated Australia and Bangladesh to place in the semi-finals. However, they could generate very little resistance but fell against South Africa. 

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Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan was pleased with the team's overall campaign despite the team's nine-wicket loss to South Africa in the ICC T20 World Cup semifinals. The 25-year-old cricketer praised the success of seamers and spinners in this "great learning experience."

"It was tough, tough for us as a team. We might have done better but the conditions did not allow us to do what we wanted. That is how T20 cricket is, you need to be ready for all conditions. I think they bowled really well. I think we got good success in this tournament because the seamers bowled really well, you need good starts. I think we were unlucky with Mujeeb's injury, but our seamers and even Nabi bowled brilliantly with the new ball. That made our job easier as spinners," Skipper Rashid Khan said during the post-match presentation.

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