Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott has slammed the pitch that was used in Trinidad for the South Africa vs Afghanistan semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2024. Afghanistan were thrashed by the Proteas, who bowled them out for 56 runs, the lowest total ever recorded by a side in a T20 World Cup semifinal.
The South African bowlers were on point from the start, but they were helped by the ground in Trinidad, which had some uneven bounce and lateral seam movement. Even though South Africa chased down the target in 8.5 overs, their batters too struggled.
“I don’t want to get myself into trouble and I don’t want to come across as bitter or it being a case of sour grapes but that’s not the pitch that you want to have a match, a semi-final of a World Cup on, plain and simple,” Trott said at the post-match press conference.
“It should be a fair contest. I’m not saying it should be flat completely with no spin and no seam movement, I’m saying you shouldn’t have batsmen worrying about going forward. They should be confident in foot movement and be able to hit through the line or use their skills. T20 is about attacking and about scoring runs and taking wickets, not looking to survive,” he added.
Tarouba hosted five World Cup games, and only once did the team batting first score 100 runs. The West Indies won by 149/6 over New Zealand, which the co-hosts successfully defended.
Afghan Players were tired but that’s no excuse: Jonathan Trott
Afghanistan’s first-ever World Cup semifinal appearance came after an emotionally packed and exhausting 40 hours. After defeating Bangladesh in the early hours of Tuesday in Kingston. Their trip to Tarouba was then delayed for four hours. Even during the toss, skipper Rashid Khan mentioned that he hadn’t slept much.
“We only got back to the hotel at three o’clock and then we had to leave at eight o’clock five hours later so we didn’t get much sleep so the guys obviously were very tired and had a lot to process really emotionally and physically. So all new territory for the guys,” Trott said.
The 43-year-old hoped that the semifinal loss would serve as a learning for the team that has improved leaps and bounds in the last five years.
“What it takes to play international cricket and play against a bowling side like South Africa on a pitch that’s perhaps not conducive to high-scoring runs and finding ways of winning games…we just couldn’t find a way today,” he said.
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