When bat proved mightier than gun..

[Also on cricdude.com]

Karim Sadiq, Afghanistan opener said about his team, “Having survived in refugee camps and fought for food and clothes all their life, they are not used to defeat”. Yeah, that’s the spirit team Afghanistan carries with it. It is amazing how a country like Afghanistan can pick up bat instead of guns.

I was awestruck when I first heard the news that Afghanistan had made it to the World T20. No doubt they are a tough bunch and they want to get counted on such a big platform. They aren’t in West Indies for nothing. They have proved it in the recent past that they deserve to be there and that nothing is impossible. A year ago nobody in their wildest of dreams thought of Afghanistan being a part of this elite group. Here they are to make their country proud. It’s a dream come true for players from Afghanistan to be playing against the world’s best cricketers. No one is expecting them to win the tournament here but the very fact that they made it till here should be motivation enough for them. Team Afghanistan is an inspiring story for other upcoming countries. There are a lot of youngsters in the team and they need to be nurtured well. As a team they didn’t look great in their series opener against India. But then they will certainly improve with proper coaching and exposure.

You simply can’t produce top class cricketers with not a single turf cricket in the entire country. It’s good news that the International Cricket Council and the Asian Cricket Council are providing grants to cricket in Afghanistan for better infrastructure. They need to set themselves better standards and keep their feet on the ground. Once that happens they will be a better side. I still can’t believe there’s a cricket team from Afghanistan. They have done a commendable job till now. They need to get better. It sounds like a fairy tale to me. But I’m glad it’s real. I’ve always endorsed T20 cricket for only one reason that it globalizes the sport. Here’s a live example for it. Hope cricket brings some solace to the war-tone nation.