Watch: Afghan Cricketer’s “Oscar” Worthy Acting After Coach Urges Afghanistan To Slow Things During T20 WC Match vs Bangladesh
Gulbadin Naib's calf-act during the Afghanistan vs Bangladesh T20 World Cup match, has now triggered the spirit of the cricket debate.
Afghanistan is hogging all the limelight and rightly so! For the very first time in their cricketing history, the Rashid Khan-led side have managed to progress to the semi-finals of an ICC event. Afghanistan defeated Bangladesh in a must-win Super 8 match of the ongoing T20 World Cup to progress to the knockout stages, and the side will now square off against South Africa in the first semi-final. However, during the match, it was all-rounder Gulbadin Naib who came up with an "Oscar" worthy acting performance, as the commentators put it.
Afghanistan had Bangladesh staring down the barrel at 81/7 in a chase of 116 and it was then that rain intervened for a third time in the contest.
At that time, Bangladesh were two runs behind as per DLS, and understanding the situation, Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott urged his players to slow things down.
It was then that Gulbadin, who was standing at first clip, suddenly held his left thigh and collapsed, indicating cramps. This incident left commentator Pommie Mbangwa shocked, and he remarked, "it has the potential to be either an Emmy or Oscar-worthy performance."
Check out the video here:
MOMENT of the World Cup
— S I D (@iMSIDPAK) June 25, 2024
Gulbadin Naib. Give this man an OSCAR.
GOAT actor of our generation #AFGvBAN #AFGvsBAN #T20WoldCup pic.twitter.com/NRB54zhqBd
Here are some of the reactions to the incident:
This has got to be the most funniest thing ever Gulbadin Naib just breaks down after coach tells him to slow things down pic.twitter.com/JdHm6MfwUp
— Sports Production (@SportsProd37) June 25, 2024
Congratulations, Afghanistan 🇦🇫
— Trendulkar (@Trendulkar) June 25, 2024
Also, Gulbadin Naib is running the fastest pic.twitter.com/OPk8CWJuxX
Gulbadin Naib was struggling to walk at 10.01am.
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) June 25, 2024
- He was running the fastest at 10.34am when Afghanistan won. pic.twitter.com/KRv3mOyU9O
Gulbadin Naib pic.twitter.com/Z1x08WUcoS
— Raja Babu (@GaurangBhardwa1) June 25, 2024
At that time, commentator Simon Doull said, "No, not this way. No please. I'm not buying this."
Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan was also left surprised by this act, and he was seen urging Gulbadin to get back up on his feet and carry on, believing that his teammate was probably acting.
When the match began, Gulbadin was miraculously back up. He even took the wicket of Tanzim Hasan Sakib. When Afghanistan ended up winning the match, Gulbadin Naib was seen celebrating wildly, and he ran the entire length of the stadium, without any hiccups.
