The Afghanistan team has chalked out plans for the entire Australian side and is not just focused on its bete noire Glenn Maxwell, skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi said on the eve of their must-win Champions Trophy match. Having knocked England out of the tournament with a memorable eight-run win in Lahore on Wednesday, Afghanistan are now seeking to get the better of Australia at the same venue on Friday and book a semifinal berth.
"You think we will come only to play with Maxwell? Do you think it will be like that? We have planned for entire Australian team, and I know that he (Maxwell) played really well in the 2023 World Cup, but that's part of the history," Shahidi said at the pre-match press conference.
Chasing 292, Australia were staring at a certain defeat after losing seven wickets with less than 100 on the board, but then, Maxwell played one of the greatest knocks in history of one-day cricket to steer his side into an unbelievable win, and days later, the Aussies won a record-extending sixth World Cup.
However, the Afghans exacted revenge for that painful defeat with victory against Australia in the T20 World Cup a year later after Maxwell again threatened to take the game away from them.
"After that, we beat them in T20 World Cup, and we think about all opposition team. We are not coming to the ground to plan on individual players. We will try our best to come with the planning, and we are not playing only Maxwell – we are playing Australia," Shahidi said.
Wednesday's win was their second in ODIs against England after their stunning victory in the 2023 World Cup in India. The victory against England sparked wild celebrations in the Afghan capital of Kabul where fireworks were lit and streets were filled with jubilant fans. Should Afghanistan get past Australia, it will pave the way for their second successive entry into the semifinals of an ICC event in less than a year, following their inspiring run in the T20 World Cup in the Americas in 2024.
Shahidi, however, is not reading much into the prospects of semifinal appearance. "I think it will be a good game for cricket, and our focus will be to keep things simple and don't worry much about playing semifinal. We will try to do our basics well, and we will try to come to the ground with good planning," Shahidi said.
With great spinners such as Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmed at his disposal, Shahidi is pleased to see the track in Lahore offering help to the slow bowlers. "In Karachi, there was different soil on the pitch we played. It was, I think, Australian soil ... So that's why there was nothing on the pitch for the spinner. But yeah, today (against England) it was a little bit of support. I cannot say the way we get pitches in other countries, like in Dubai and other countries. But yeah, there was support, and I think the spinners bowled also really well, in tight areas," he said.
"In this kind of condition, our spinners are very good, and if they have a little bit help, I know they will do it for the team," Shahidi added.
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