A day before Afghanistan takes on the United Arab Emirates in a must-win T20 World Cup clash at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Monday, Rashid Khan was refreshingly witty and candid.

The Afghan skipper entertained questions about the despair of losing to South Africa in Ahmedabad after not one but two Super Overs, his yearning for Afghan cuisine when away from home, and also cleverly dodged a request for a prediction on the India versus Pakistan battle by quipping about the weather in Colombo. “My prediction is for rain. That is what I have seen in the news,” he said in jest.

The first query pertained to that madcap climax against the Proteas. The outcome must have left a sour taste, but the ace leggie is still clinging to a glimmer of hope.

“It is disappointing. The last one-and-a-half years, we were working hard for this World Cup,” Rashid said. “Still, anything can happen. We have seen Zimbabwe beat Australia.”

Slender defeats like the one to South Africa tend to inflict a psychological scar. It reminded Rashid of the excruciating evening in Mumbai in the 2023 ODI World Cup when Glenn Maxwell’s unbeaten 201 took Australia over the line.

“The SA game won’t go away from our minds. The loss to Australia at Wankhede in the 2023 World Cup didn’t go away from our minds until we beat them in the 2024 T20 World Cup. It took us time to get over it,” he revealed.

For Afghanistan to prevail in close contests, Rashid believes that his team will need to engage more often against the top teams.

“If we had played against NZ and SA in bilaterals and not just in the World Cup, we would have more of an idea,” he stated. “At the World Cup, there is no scope for mistakes. So, that pressure is different.”

Published on Feb 15, 2026