Follow UsThe tag of the second-best cricket team in Asia has been doing rounds and is always mentioned, mostly to poke fun at Afghanistan, when they are not doing well. Their T20 skipper and Gujarat Titans’ all-rounder from the Indian Premier League (IPL), Rashid Khan, does not like that mentality of poking fun one bit, and he made it clear on October 2 (Friday).
“There is one thing which is always going on in the media: people call us the second-best Asian team. We didn’t say that,” Rashid was quoted as saying to journalists ahead of the start of the three-match series against Bangladesh, as quoted by Times of India.
“I think in the past, we performed, and that’s where we got the tag. If you look into the Asia Cup, the T20 World Cup semifinal, the ODI World Cup, we have beaten big teams. Champions Trophy, we beat England. That’s why we got the tag,” he explained.
However, he mentioned the trigger point later on, summarising why he doesn’t like that 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,” said the 27-year-old.
He went on to school those who make fun of teams’ performances, saying, “We are always trying our best to be a better team. Sometimes you do well, sometimes you don’t. People discuss it and make fun of it. And I feel like nowadays, the more you make fun of someone, the more people like you. And I feel like it’s going on a different level. And then it doesn’t look nice.”
Rashid was making a reference to his team’s losses in the Asia Cup 2025, where they failed to reach the Super Four stage.