Following Afghanistan’s humiliation by South Africa in the 2024 T20 World Cup semi-final at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad, on Thursday, Rashid Khan shared an emotional tweet on social media.

“We’ll never forget this T20 World Cup! I’m so proud of our team and the fight that each and every one of us has put out!

From here, we’ll keep improving and return in the following one with more grit.

“We are grateful to everyone who supported us and kept the fight going,” he said.

The Afghanistan captain, who lost to South Africa in a lopsided semifinal, could not disguise his displeasure at the post-match press conference.

As a team, it was difficult. Although we may have performed better, the circumstances prevented us from achieving our goals. That’s the nature of Twenty20 cricket; you have to be prepared for everything,” a defeated Rashid said.

The spinner thinks his team, which made it to its first-ever semifinals, has gained a lot of knowledge from the competition, nevertheless.

“For us, this is only the beginning; we have the faith and confidence to overcome any opposition. We just must maintain our procedures. For us, this has been a fantastic learning opportunity.

“The belief is what we take away from the competition. It basically comes down to handling difficult and stressful conditions, which we know we are capable of,” he said.

So, is there anything that he and his team might do better together?

“Yes, there is some work to be done in order to extend the innings, particularly in the middle order.

Although we have had success so far, we want to return and put in even more effort, particularly in the batting area.

Rashid gave thanks to the South African pacers for their outstanding adherence to their game plan.

They bowled pretty well, in my opinion. We had a great tournament, in my opinion, since the seamers bowled very effectively. Good beginnings are necessary (when bowlers are leading).

The 25-year-old said that the Afghan bowlers performed well throughout the competition.

“Mujeeb’s injury may have been unfortunate for us, but our seamers and even Muhammad Nabi bowled brilliantly with the new ball.” As spinners, it made our jobs simpler.

We’re willing to participate in a semifinal and fall short against a strong team like South Africa,” he said.

“Mujeeb’s injury may have been unfortunate for us, but our seamers and even Muhammad Nabi bowled brilliantly with the new ball.” As spinners, it made our jobs simpler.

We’re willing to participate in a semifinal and fall short against a strong team like South Africa,” he said.