Some are saying Afghanistan played better than England and Pakistan, while others believe Afghanistan is clearly the second-best team in Asia after India. Praise is pouring in from all over for the Afghanistan cricket team. Despite finishing third in Group B of the Champions Trophy points table and being out of the semi-final race, their dominant performance against England has brought them back into the spotlight.
As mentioned, appreciation is coming from all corners. Recently, Dale Steyn spoke about Afghanistan’s meteoric rise, and now this former South African pacer believes the team is set to take ICC tournaments by storm—or rather, that they will win an ICC tournament in the next 10 years, showing how impressed he is with Afghanistan’s progress.
There is no doubt about how well Afghanistan is playing white-ball cricket. Their success in the T20 World Cup 2024, where they reached the semi-finals despite not being expected to do so, and their strong run in the last 50-over World Cup, where they nearly clinched a semi-final spot, both prove their rapid rise. It is clear that what Steyn said about Afghanistan’s bright future in cricket is absolutely right.
Dale Steyn on Afghanistan
Talking to ESPNcricinfo, Steyn said, “Back in the day, a lot of players would go play county cricket or first-class cricket to improve their skills and patience. I think we live in a time now where people are not patient enough. We can hardly watch two seconds of an Instagram story, and it just feels like the Afghanistan players are similar when they’re playing their cricket.”
“I think a lot of them play T20 cricket around the world, which is great—it’s great for their pockets and great for them to learn. But maybe spending some time in four-day games might help because one-day cricket is essentially a shortened version of a Test match. It’s got its moments where T20 is applied, but patience is one of the biggest things that Afghanistan players need to learn. Once they get that down, honestly, in the next decade, they could win ICC tournaments, for sure.”
Afghanistan in the last 3 ICC tournaments
| Tournament | Performance Summary |
| 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup | Finished 6th; won 4 matches, including three consecutive victories |
| 2024 ICC T20 World Cup | Reached semi-finals; lost to South Africa |
| 2025 ICC Champions Trophy | Debut tournament; defeated England, eliminating them from the tournament |
There is clear progress. Afghanistan has registered some remarkable victories across recent ICC tournaments.
In the 2023 ODI Cricket World Cup, they stunned defending champions England by 69 runs, secured their first-ever ODI win against Pakistan, and dominated Sri Lanka. They also defeated the Netherlands.
In the 2024 T20 World Cup, they once again emerged as giant killers, demolishing New Zealand by 84 runs and pulling off a historic 21-run win against Australia.
Most recently, in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, they defeated England, knocking them out of the tournament.
