Afghanistan eagerly anticipating http://www.senore.com/Cricket/ICC-World-Cup-2011-c100625 World Twenty20 – Cricket News Update
Dr. Omar Zakhilwal, Chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, has stated that the Afghan nation and cricket team are eagerly awaiting the ICC World Twenty20, scheduled to be played in Sri Lanka this September.
“The whole of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Afghanistan-c745 is looking forward to the World Twenty20,” said Zakhilwal.
An Associate/Affiliate member of the ICC, Afghanistan are one of the most recent success stories in the cricketing world. Emerging from a country embroiled in political turmoil and unrest since the militant Taliban were ousted by US Forces in 2001, the team
has gone on to dominate among the minnows of the cricketing world.
Having won 12 of the 23 ODIs they have played so far, with ODI status which is valid till 2013, the Afghan team breezed through the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers. They won all seven of their Group A matches in March this year, but following a comprehensive
47-run win in the Preliminary Final against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ireland-c751 in the final on March 24.
However, the team, who have played a total of 11 T20s so far, managed to qualify for the mega event in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 and England. Their first match is scheduled against India at the
R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on September 19, while the second will be played against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013 at the same venue on September 21.
In addition to the excitement of competing on the international stage, the team’s confidence is likely to be boosted by the fact that they have also managed to face two ICC Full Members on the cricket field, despite having been unable to defeat them.
“If you see the performance of our players, and even though we may not have won these matches, but the way the players stood up to the pressure of international cricket proves that we have come a long way,” said Zakhilwal.
Their first ODI against a Test-playing nation was against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 at the Sharjah Cricket
Association Stadium, which they also lost, by a margin of 66 runs.
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