Jonathan Trott reacts after Super Over drama: ‘Such losses can sting for a while’

Afghanistan's Rahmanullah Gurbaz reacts after loosing his wicket during the T20 World Cup cricket match between Afghanistan and South Africa (PTI Photo)

AHMEDABAD: Decisions taken with match-ups in mind can backfire, as it did for Afghanistan on Wednesday. In-stead of sending the in-form Rahmanullah Gurbaz to bat in the second Super Over, Afghanistan sent in Mohammad Nabi, trusting his striking abilities against spin bowling. The move failed spectacularly as Nabi not only consumed a dot but was dismissed off the second, leaving the hard-hitting Gurbaz with no room for error. Gurbaz obliged with three maximums but failed to execute the crucial fourth hit as left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj hurled the delivery wide of his hitting arc. Asked why Nabi came out to bat at the start of the second Super Over, Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott said, “We saw that they’re going to bowl spinner Maharaj and Nabi is a good hitter of spin. We didn’t get it right with the call we made and Gurbaz was in good form. It’s one of those things.”

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Asked about the lessons from to be drawn from such close contests, Trott said, “As a coach, you’ve got to be very clear on what you do. What happens is, certainly when the game ends, there’s a lot of emotion and a lot of information. Sometimes it works out. Sometimes it doesn’t. When you’re on the losing side of it, you think, ‘what if ?’ If it was the other way around, South Africa would be asking themselves the same questions. “Obviously these types of losses can hurt and sting for a while. I think it’s important we look at those areas that we did really well in, but also areas that we could improve on,” he added.

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