Srinagar: Afghanistan Cricket Team and star all-rounder Rashid Khan has opened up on the issue of ‘second-best in Asia’ tag, stating that his team’s goal is to improve their performances.
Speaking in the post-match press conference, Rashid said that they have not called them the second-best side.
“There’s always talk about us being the second-best team in Asia, but that’s not something we claimed ourselves,” he said.
“That label came because of our past performances. If you look back — Asia Cup, World Cup semi-finals, ODI World Cup — we’ve beaten some top sides. Even in the Champions Trophy, we defeated England. Of course, in the future, if we don’t play well, we could slip to third, fourth, fifth, or lower,” he continued.
“Our goal is simply to improve as a team and deliver on the day. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t — that’s cricket. What matters is staying hungry to perform and aiming to get better every time. The whole ‘second-best in Asia’ narrative is just something the media has created, not us,” Rashid concluded.
Afghanistan is currently playing a three-match T20I series against Bangladesh. Notably, after being eliminated from the Asia Cup 2025 group stage, they started their series against the Tigers on a poor note as well.
Bangladesh defeated Afghanistan by four wickets in the T20I opener at the iconic Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
