Used to being showered with accolades for game-changing performances, the ignominy of recording World Cup's worst-ever bowling performance (9-0-110-0) has been a humbling experience for Rashid Khan, especially with the kind of brickbats he received on social media.
"I am not thinking too much about that match. People forget 10 good days and conveniently remember that one particular bad day. They don't like to remember what Rashid did on previous 10 days," he said.
"I would focus on the mistakes I committed in that match and rectify those in the coming matches. No point thinking about the criticism. I need to keep things simple," added the 20-year-old, putting up a brave front.
But he did acknowledge that not playing enough games against big teams has been a huge factor for the Afghans.
"Actually, we haven't played a lot against teams like Australia and England and that pressure is also there. In a stage like World cup, suddenly the pressure increases manifold when you play against big sides and that can affect the performance," Rashid reasoned.
"This is the first time, we played South Africa in an ODI. We played New Zealand and Australia after 2015 World Cup. If you play a team once in four years, you are bound to face problems. As players, we understood we need to work harder." He did accept that Afghanistan need work on its bowling department.
"As a bowling unit, we need to do more. Yes, we have been struggling in pace bowling department. I think we need to have proper 140 kph plus bowlers. We need these bowlers in these conditions. It's not that we will get these kinds of bowlers in a year. It will take time," Rashid signed off.
On being asked if his relationship with skipper Gulbadin Naib had strained after he raised a voice about his appointment earlier this year, Rashid said, "Neither do I play for Gulbadin nor for the cricket board (ACB) but for Afghanistan."
Rashid and Afghanistan's other superstar Mohammed Nabi had raised objections when Gulbadin replaced Asghar Afghan as the skipper for the World Cup, something that didn't go down well with the country's cricket board.
With five straight losses, there are a lot of conspiracy theories being floated including one about Rashid's strained relationship with Gulbadin, something that might have impacted the spinner's performance, which includes World Cup's worst bowling figures against England.
"I think there is no problem in my relationship with Gulbadin. I support him as much as I did when Asghar was the captain. If I supported Asghar 50 per cent on the field, Gulbadin has my 100 per cent support," Rashid told PTI in an exclusive interview on the eve of their match against India.
"Right from time we landed in England, no one has spoken about the issue. I think it was blown out of proportion by the media. Some of us have been playing together for 15-16 years. So if nothing has happened in more than decade, then what can suddenly change in a day or two."
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