T20 WC: Afghanistan will not be complacent despite win over Scotland, says pacer Naveen

Sharjah [UAE], October 26 (ANI): Afghanistan will not get complacent despite their huge win over Scotland in Group 2 of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, insists pacer Naveen ul-Haq.
The seamer was the only other bowler to take a wicket with Mujeeb Ur Rahman (5-20) and Rashid Khan (4-9) reducing Scotland to 60 all out, helping Afganistan register an emphatic 130-run win. Their dominance with the ball came after a clinical batting performance which saw Afghanistan make 190 for four.
“Every tournament, the first game is very important so it was a good team effort and we needed that win to start our journey into the tournament. It was a good one. Our players were ready for it. We were well prepared. Lots of our players were playing and participating in different leagues, so all the boys were ready for this tournament and this match,” said Naveen in an official release issued by the ICC.
“We had this plan of the left-right combination, so for both the batsmen, it was easy to target the shorter side and we had this plan and we executed it well. We needed that win to start our tournament so we won’t be complacent about this win, we move forward. We will enjoy the victory, it was a great game, but looking forward into the tournament we have still four games,” he added.
For Scotland, it was an evening to forget as they recorded their lowest total in a T20I and head coach Shane Burger believes it will be a difficult defeat to get over.
“It’s obviously a tough pill to swallow. We’ve had really good momentum recently, so you get into a rhythm of what that feels like and that’ll be really tough to swallow. But this competition doesn’t allow you to think about it for too long. We’ve got another game in a couple of days’ time, we have to just regroup, reset and go again against Namibia,” said Burger.
“The game is all about small margins, fine margins at times, and we didn’t quite get momentum on our side this evening. They just showed that with a few of their world-class players, they were able just to pile on the pressure at the right times and in T20 cricket that can happen. It can go against you,” he added.
Scotland saw the dangerous Calum MacLeod and Richie Berrington both dismissed lbw and reviews showed the wickets being decided by umpire’s call, with fine margins consigning Scotland to their fate.
“Sometimes those things can go your way and I’m not here to speak about decisions because I feel sometimes we make our own luck,” Burger added. (ANI)