Afghanistan's Ikram Alikhil celebrates after Rashid Khan bowls out England's Mark Wood to win the match.
Credit: Reuters Photo
New Delhi: A proud Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott feels the famous upset win over defending champions England in the World Cup on Sunday will encourage more youngsters back home to play cricket.
Afghanistan shocked England by 69 runs to pull off one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. The win was Afghanistan's only victory over England in the ODIs.
"The players know this win will bring smiles on the faces of the affected people back home. This win will also encourage boys and girls in Afghanistan to pick up a cricket bat or ball," said Trott, himself a former England player.
Recently, Afghanistan was hit by an earthquake which killed more than 1,000 people.
"It's not just cricket the guys have played, the guys know the significance of this win. The guys know what people back home went through and are doing their bid to help the victims," Trott said.
Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who played a significant role in the win with his knock of 80 off 57 balls, too said the win means a lot for the people back home.
"The win will give people in Afghanistan reason to be happy after the disaster. We all know how things are back home and doing whatever possible to comfort them and help them," Gurbaz said.