Afghanistan’s dreams of scripting a fairytale turned into a virtual nightmare as India demolished them by an innings and 262 runs inside two days to win the historic one-off Test match here.
Afghanistan came across painfully short of experience for the longest format and were bowled out for 109 and 103 in pursuit of India’s first innings total of 474 all out today.
This was the first time that India won a Test match in two days while it has now happened for the 21st time in the 141-year-history of the traditional format. India, however, did become the first team to claim 20 wickets in a day.
Afghans, who have some impressive accomplishments in the shortest format lasted a total of 66.3 overs (27.5 overs and 38.4 overs), posing serious questions over their readiness to cope up with demands of five-day cricket.
The gulf in class was a reality but the Test match exposed their inability to understand the needs of the longest format. Their performance lends support to the demands for a two-tier Test format, which could get them battle-ready for future series.
With an average first-class experience of less than 15 matches, Test cricket wouldn’t have been easy for Afghans but if a robust first-class structure isn’t put in place, ICC’s novel idea may just backfire.