New Zealand captain Kane Williamson labelled the loss in the T20 World Cup 2024 match against Afghanistan as “incredibly frustrating.” The Kiwis faced a humiliating defeat against Rashid Khan-led Afghanistan in their opening T20 World Cup 2024 match.
During the run chase of 160 runs against the Afghans, the “Black Caps” struggled to score runs against the likes of Rashid Khan and Fazalhaq Farooqi. Both Afghanistan bowlers registered four wickets by conceding 17 runs, each. With this, New Zealand were bowlers out for 75 runs.
“Incredibly frustrating performance. We certainly did prepare to the best of our ability. So, no excuses. For us, it`s moving on quickly. “We know we`ve got a match in a few days and it`s about putting out a better performance,” Williamson said in the post-match press conference. In their second Group C match, New Zealand will face co-hosts West Indies at Trinidad on June 13.
New Zealand will lock horns with West Indies in their next T20 World Cup 2024 fixture.
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Ahead of the Caribbean challenge, Williamson said the side would sit and discuss their next match soon as the tournament is not much longer. “We`re going to have to sit down. We are going to have to have a chat and review a little bit and then move on quickly because the tournament is short from here on.”
“I mean, it was mentioned we`ve been here for a long time (in the West Indies), but we knew that when the games started, they`d be coming thick and fast.
“So, it`s making some small adjustments, and we know we go to a different venue against a different opposition. So, it`s important we prepare for what`s in front of us again. We know how strong the West Indies side is,” elaborated Williamson.
However, the affable Kiwi did not take anything away from a brilliant Afghan side, which dished out a cohesive performance to outwit his unit. “I mean certainly they`re not the standards that we expect of ourselves. But take nothing away from Afghanistan, they were superb.
“And they`ve been building as a group for some time now and we`re seeing performances like that from them quite regularly,” he added. The ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 has so far seen some really low-scoring games, but Williamson dubbed them as “exciting.”
“We`ve seen it throughout; the conditions keep changing in this competition and we`ve seen so many tight matches and that`s the nature of it which is exciting in terms of a competition.
“But for us it`s changing our focus, looking at some of the areas we can definitely get better at and moving on,” he added.
(With PTI Inputs)
