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ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP

June 22, 2019

Gulbadin Naib

Southampton, England, UK

India - 224/8 (50), Afghanistan - 213 (49.5)

Q. Gulbadin, do you think that Nabi could have attacked a few overs earlier maybe, considering the situation that it was always known that Bumrah and Shami would bowl the last four overs?
GULBADIN NAIB: Actually, we planned that we're going to take match at the end to the five overs. So Nabi played really well according to the plan, but credit goes to Bumrah's spell. He's a world Number 1 bowler, so he bowled really well. Also, Shami, he bowled really well in the last over.

We missed something in the -- like Najib and Rashid make mistakes, but credit goes to the Indian bowlers side. They bowled really well. So Nabi also played well.

Q. Do you take confidence from -- obviously, you lost out in the end, but do you take confidence from getting so close to such a strong Indian side?
GULBADIN NAIB: Yeah. At the start of the tournament, I said -- and when we played first four games, we lost really badly, and also we played against England and now India as strong sides and also the other favourites of the tournament. So I think we're now getting better and better day by day. This is the team I wanted actually. Also in the batting side. So this is a good sign. Like you play these kinds of teams, they didn't give you a single chance, and also credit goes to the Indian side, how they bowl, how they field, but we did a lot of things good, but in the end we miss it. So credit goes to the Indian side.

Q. Gulbadin, when Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav were batting, what was the sense that you were getting? You gave no space to them to even rotate strike properly. So what was it like at that time? Can you just talk about what were you talking to each other?
GULBADIN NAIB: The good thing is that Rashid and Mujeeb came back, back in form, so they bowled really well. Dhoni is a very experienced player, such a great player, and he's a legend of Indian team, but we just planned it for Dhoni and Jadhav. So the wicket is not that much good, and also the ball is turning a little bit. When the ball turning, it's really difficult for anyone. I say that so when Rashid's ball turns, maybe it's really difficult for any team. But Jadhav and Dhoni make a good partnership in the middle. So I think we -- India take the game away from there. One time we just think so they will score 170, 180, but India is one of the best teams now in the world. So you cannot take it easy. They didn't give a single chance. Credit goes to Jadhav and Dhoni partnership.

Q. Captain, 107/225 to win. Do you think that some of your batsmen also choked? Otherwise, you were cruising along, and it was an easy match to win.
GULBADIN NAIB: Yeah, I'm saying that, like when we chase this kind of total, like 220, 250, around like -- like the middle order should go, one or two should go to 50 or 80. 30, 20 runs is not enough. It's not enough. Credit goes to the Indian side. So they bowled really well, and we're struggling on the short ball, but we worked. We're taking a lot of positives from here, so when you're playing this kind of team, you learn a lot of things. We learn it with your mistakes. Yeah, the score is chasable, but I think we didn't take our responsibilities, especially on the batting side.

Q. Did the batsmen choke? Do you think the batsmen choked under pressure?
GULBADIN NAIB: No, there is not pressure. The wicket is very good for the batting. So the first half, it's very difficult for the batting for the Indian side. Everyone know that Indian batting lineup is very strong lineup. So how we bowled, the first half is very difficult for batting. The second half, the wicket is very good. It's quite good for batting. Again, we just didn't take responsibility on the batting side. So we just -- the short we played, so I think we didn't need in the end.

Q. Can you describe the kinds of emotions that were going through you during that chase? Especially when Nabi was still out in the middle giving you a real chance.
GULBADIN NAIB: Yeah, obviously, I think one time we think we can win easy, easily, very easily, but in the end, I say, yeah, emotion coming -- inside. We are sad because we have a chance to beat this kind of team. In the World Cup, it's a big achievement for any team. But the big teams, they didn't give a single chance. Today we miss an opportunity to win, to beat India. India is one of the best sides. It's my favourite team. Always my favourite team, and I support Indian team when I'm watching Indian team. So now and you also -- and also, my favourite is also Virat Kohli, and I played against him. So today I missed the opportunity to beat them. But India is one of the best teams now.

Q. Captain, you talked about the turning ball today. Is that the warmest that you've played in England this time? And also, the ball turned, so were the conditions the best for your spinners? Were they happiest during this tournament, during the match?
GULBADIN NAIB: First four games we played, so the wicket is very difficult to bat or ball, especially for us. So we didn't expect this kind of wickets when we played the first four games. But in the last two games, it's really good surface, especially for the spinners, and I think if you watched the game, Mujeeb, Rashid, also Rahmat Shah, Nabi bowled really well. So credit goes to them, how they bowl. Last game Rashid bowled really badly against England, and then he came very strong.

Any team, so you can help, especially for our spinners, so it's very difficult to bat on it. Today I think the wicket is very good for the first half for the spinners, and the second half, the second inning is quite good for the batting. But, again, it's a good team, so they didn't give a single chance. So they're getting really hard.

Q. Gulbadin, you had a tough tournament until today, and Nabi was excellent with the ball as well as with the bat. Had you had any words to him? Obviously, you needed a senior player to stand up.
GULBADIN NAIB: Yeah, obviously, if you look for the team on this event, senior players, I also say senior players should come forward. So today Nabi showed the skills how he's one of the best players of Afghanistan and also in the world. So he's a good player, but he has a little problem in his left leg. So I think he didn't -- in the middle, he didn't run fast. So one thing is that. But he struggled. He tried to finish the game, but I think Bumrah is one of the world Number 1 bowlers. So that's why he bowled really well. I think Nabi did his job, but it's not enough.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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