CHENNAI: Asked to bat by defending champions England, opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz blasted 84 off just 57 balls to give Afghanistan a solid start in their third league match of the ODI World Cup in New Delhi on Sunday. The team, however, lost the way losing four wickets for 60 as Hashmatullah Shahidi and Co were reduced to 174/5 in the 33rd over. Left-hand wicketkeeper-batter Ikram Alikhil was at the non-striker's end when his skipper was cleaned up by Joe Root.
It was a crucial moment in the game as the Asians needed to arrest the slide if they wished to post a competitive total. Ikram, playing his first match in the tournament, then hit 58 off 66 balls and forged a couple of useful partnerships with Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan as Afghanistan scored 284. It eventually proved enough to register an upset victory over England. The win also ended Afghanistan's 14-match losing streak in the tournament since making their debut 2015.
Interestingly, before returning to the national squad in August this year, Ikram had played 12 ODIs including seven World Cup matches in the 2019 edition. It was Ikram who scored 86 runs as Afghanistan fell 24 short of the 312-run target they were required to chase against West Indies in their last World Cup game in 2019. He then played three more ODIs against the Caribbean in Lucknow scoring a fifty before being dropped only to return almost four years later.
It was Asadullah Khan, former acting chief executive officer of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, who inducted the then 18-year-old Ikram into the national fold. Once Khan returned as the chief selector of the ACB this year, he brought Ikram back into the mix.
Needless to say, Khan, who had served as the chief selector in the past before being the head coach of Qatar, was a happy man when Ikram played a key role in Afghanistan's win. "In 2019, I was the acting CEO of ACB and I gave Ikram a chance. He proved himself then. Being a chief selector again, I wanted him back. If the players have trust that somebody will consider their talent, then they perform. The same is the case with Azmat (Azmatullah Omarzai). My philosophy is to give the chance to a player at the right time when he is at his peak," Khan told this daily.
Even he was not aware why Ikram was ignored all these years. After Afghanistan lost their first two matches, the chief selector put his foot down to include Ikram in the playing XI even if it meant Gurbaz not keeping wickets. "The most important thing was to convince the coach and the captain. I am really happy that the captain made that change. It was a difficult decision taken under pressure," Khan added. He was all praise for the ACB and skipper. "I am really happy that the top management of the ACB gave me full authority. All credit to Hashmat for being a sharp-minded captain."
Coming back to Ikram, Khan said, "The best quality he has is that he can bat at any position. He first builds his innings and then goes for the big shots. He is a brave batter." Khan said Ikram was in constant touch with him even when he was with the Qatar team. "He was hopeful that he would get another opportunity and when he got it, he grabbed it with both hands. He waited patiently for his chance. My role was to keep him motivated. Despite hailing from a modest background, he didn't give up." So what was his ward's reaction after playing that memorable innings? "I told him well done and he said 'Thank you for the trust," signed off Khan.
ALSO READ | PCB lodges complaint with ICC over 'inappropriate conduct' during Indo-Pak World Cup game
