‘Cricket is the only source of happiness back home’: Afghanistan enjoys historic run to T20 World Cup semifinals

Pakistan and Australia both exited cricket’s T20 World Cup early. Meanwhile, Afghanistan reached the semifinals, a success sparking massive celebrations back home.

Pakistan exited cricket’s T20 World Cup at the group stage. Australia – one of the sport’s heavyweights – couldn’t get past the Super 8 stage. And it was at Australia’s expense that Afghanistan reached the semifinals, a success sparking mass scenes of celebrations back home. After reaching the tournament’s final four, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) posted videos of swarms of fans flooding the streets to celebrate the team’s historic run. The team was also congratulated by a myriad of influential figures from the country, including former president Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban’s foreign minister, Mullah Amir Muttaqi, and minister of information and culture, Mullah Khairullah Khairkhah. For a country which has been torn apart through wars and suffered natural disasters such as May’s floods, Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan is conscious that his team’s success provides a degree of happiness for Afghan cricket fans. Those floods came after drought in Afghanistan and are a dramatic example of the climate crisis hitting those who have least contributed to rising global temperatures. “Cricket is the only source of happiness back home, you all know that,” Khan told reporters after the impressive victory over Australia earlier in the tournament