Former England captain Michael Vaughan accused ICC of favouring India and being unfair to other teams during the T20 World Cup. Vaughan said the first semi-final at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba should have been between the Super Eight Group 1 toppers (India) and the Group 2 runner-ups (England) but instead, it turned out to be between South Africa, the Group 2 winners and the Group 1 second-placed Afghanistan.
It was decided that India would play the second semi-final in Guyana, irrespective of their standing in the Super Eights. ICC did not provide any official reason for that but it seems like it was done for the viewers in India. The first semi-final, a night encounter, was supposed to begin at 6 am IST (June 27), which is not the ideal time for viewerships in India. The second semi-final - a day game - was scheduled at 8 PM IST on the same, a much better time for spectators in India.
Moreover, all of India's matches in this World Cup have been day games i.e 8 PM starts in New Delhi for the same reason while most other teams have played matches under lights.
This created an unusual circumstance of different playing conditions for the two semi-finals. The first semi-final between Afghanistan and South Africa had a reserve day, but none was scheduled for the India vs England one. India, because of their higher standing in the Super Eights, will advance to the final if no match is possible due to inclement weather in Guyana.
{{/usCountry}}This created an unusual circumstance of different playing conditions for the two semi-finals. The first semi-final between Afghanistan and South Africa had a reserve day, but none was scheduled for the India vs England one. India, because of their higher standing in the Super Eights, will advance to the final if no match is possible due to inclement weather in Guyana.
{{/usCountry}}"Surely this Semi should have been the Guyana one .. but because the whole event is geared towards India it’s so unfair on others .. #T20IWorldCup," Vaughan wrote on X.
The former England batter's post came after Afghanistan were bowled out for 56 - the lowest score in a T20 World Cup semi-final - in 11.5 overs by South Africa.
Notably, Vaughan is not the first former cricketer to raise the schedule issue in the T20 World Cup. Former England batter David Lloyd also targetted the ICC for favouring India.
Sangling South Africa pacer Marco Jansen and left-arm wrist-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi took three wickets each while fast bowlers Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje maintained the relentless pressure with two wickets apiece.
Only Azmatullah Omarzai (10) reached double figures for the Afghans, while 13 extras contributed the most to the paltry total.
The batting collapse marked a thoroughly deflating effort for Afghanistan following the pulsating drama of Monday when they pipped Bangladesh in St Vincent to reach the last four.
Throughout this dream run to their first semi-final of a senior men's world tournament, Afghanistan have been reliant on openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran to give them a solid platform and at the same time mask the frailties of the rest of the batting line-up.
But when Jansen had Gurbaz taken at slip by Reeza Hendricks in the first over of the match, the worst fears of the Afghans and their growing mass of supporters in the Caribbean were realised as the Proteas mercilessly exploited their opponents' technical deficiencies.