Afghanistan’s heroic run in the T20 World Cup 2024 came to an end at the penultimate hurdle, as the Rashid Khan-led side suffered a lopsided 9-wicket defeat against South Africa in Trinidad. Opting to bat first, Afghanistan could only put 56 runs on the board, their lowest in T20 internationals and also the lowest in the history of T20 World Cups. After Afghanistan’s journey in the competition came to an end on Wednesday, head coach Jonathan Trott fumed at ICC, saying it wasn’t even an “even contest”.

Speaking to media at the press conference after game, Trott said that though he doesn’t want to get himself into any trouble, he does want to highlight the poor nature of the pitch that was prepared for a clash as big as a World Cup semi-final.

“I don’t want to get myself into trouble. But I also don’t want to sound a bit like ‘sour grapes’ but that’s not the pitch that you want to have a semi-final of a World Cup on. Plain and simple. It should be a fair contest. I’m not saying it should be completely flat with no spin and seam movement, you shouldn’t have batters worrying about moving forward and having the ball fly over their head. You should be confident in getting through the line or use their skills. And T20 is all about attacking and scoring runs and taking wickets. Not looking to survive,” said Trott during the press conference.

Trott wanted the pitch to offer something to both his side and South Africa. However, he feels his team was undone by a surface that favoured the opponent team more.

“If the opposition bowled well and gets you into a position after bowling well and through skill, then it’s fine to them. Then it’s about adapting.”

“If we had bowled the way South Africa had, you could have seen a different second half,” he said during the chat with media personnel.

Despite the defeat to South Africa, Afghanistan can keep their heads high, having made a mark in the tournament and elevating their status as an elite team.