Afghanistan National Cricket Team captain Rashid Khan has fired back at critics after his team was labelled the “second-best Asian team” following their disappointing Asia Cup 2025 campaign in the UAE. Rashid Khan made it clear that this tag came from the media, not from the team itself.
The spin wizard has also expressed frustration at how people mocked the Afghanistan National Cricket Team after they failed to reach the Super-Four stage of the recently concluded Asia Cup 2025. India won the Asia Cup 2025 final in Dubai on September 28 after thrashing Pakistan by five wickets.
Rashid Khan defends Afghanistan’s Asia Cup 2025 performance
Despite being considered one of the favorites to lift the trophy after solid performances in past multi-nation events, Afghanistan failed to make it to the Super Four round after they suffered a narrow loss to Bangladesh and a heavy defeat to Sri Lanka.
Rashid explained that inconsistent preparation and limited T20Is ahead of the Asia Cup 2025 affected the team’s rhythm. The skipper also mentioned how his bowling attack struggled in favorable conditions, and the batting often fell short in the continental tournament.
Rashid Khan slams media criticism, calls for respect for the team’s achievements
Rashid Khan was quoted as saying by News18 ahead of the Bangladesh series, “There is one thing which is always going around the media: people calling us the second-best Asian team. We didn’t say that, but I think in the past, we performed, and that’s where we got the tag.
If you look into the Asia Cup, the World Cup semifinal, and the ODI World Cup, we have beaten big teams. Champions Trophy, we beat England. That’s why we got the tag. In the future, if we don’t perform well, we will definitely be number three, four, five, or six. I feel we haven’t given ourselves that tag.”
He insisted that the Afghan players are always trying their best to be a better team and to perform better on the day, but sometimes things don’t go the way they would hope to, and that’s a part of the game.
Rashid further noted, “I feel like nowadays, the more you make fun of someone, the more people like you. And I feel like it’s going on on a different level. And then it doesn’t look nice.”
Rashid Khan focused on building a strong Afghanistan squad for the T20 World Cup 2026
The Afghan spinner has also insisted that the team’s focus is firmly on the future. He stressed that every match is a learning opportunity, and they are now committed to building a balanced and competitive squad ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka.
The captain has emphasized that Afghanistan will continue to play with hunger and a positive mindset, aiming to perform consistently and prove their worth on the big stage.
Rashid signed off by saying, “I think every game is very competitive. It is not like we did not play competitive cricket in the Asia Cup. For us, every game is competitive. We are not here just to have fun, enjoy, and then go back. We have a target, and the target is how we are going to be a perfect and balanced side for the next World Cup, and that’s the mindset from now on.”
Notably, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are all set to play a three-match T20I series in the UAE. The first match is scheduled on Thursday, October 2, at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah.