South Africa ease to first win

They have done it. If Afghanistan's group stage domination of New Zealand wasn't quite impressive enough, try Australia in the Super Eight.

Judging by the reactions, as they sealed their most famous ever cricketing win and first over the Aussies, this meant not just plenty, but everything.

It was reward for an enormous two-decade rise up the cricketing ranks and a result that shocked the world far more than it shocked themselves.

Rashid Khan and Afghanistan turned up with plans for both innings, ideas that had the potential to disrupt Australia's momentum, and executed with aplomb.

They beat Australia at their own game, taking their chances in the field and winning the Powerplay exchange.

Afghanistan had already announced itself as a tournament contender, but other heavyweights are now firmly aware of what this team is capable of.

Gulbadin Naib, who collected a history-making four wickets, confirmed that the best is yet to come for this team. Maybe at this T20 World Cup, maybe not. But make no mistake, as a cricketing force, Afghanistan isn't going anywhere.

"Our journey starts now," Gulbadin said when collecting his Player of the Match award.

"(Australia) is a big team, a world champion team, so for our cricket it's a big achievement (that) we can carry to the next level. In the last 10 years, we achieved a lot of goals, so this is the big achievement in our cricket. It's a great moment, not only for me, but my nation, my people. We were waiting (to beat Australia) for a long time."

Captain Rashid Khan echoed Gulbadin's raw emotion.

"It's a massive win for us as a team and as a nation," he said post-game.

"Super proud of the guys and how they delivered. It's just the beginning now, for us, and (it's) a big game next one (against Bangladesh) and we have all the chances to get to the semis."

Rashid's top-order stuck around, his fielders were clutch and his bowlers stuck to the plan.

Australia's batting line-up were never afforded a chance to settle into any kind of rhythm.

Eight Afghan players got a chance with the ball – Gulbadin being one of them. And he repaid the faith in spades, becoming the first ever player in World Cup cricket - across both ODIs and T20Is - to take four wickets as the eighth bowling option.

And fittingly, Mohammad Nabi's catch at long on was the act that sealed the win in the last over – an Afghan veteran that's been there for much of the team's mission up the ICC ranks. He's been a part of wins against 45 nations now.

And if Afghanistan progresses past the Super Eight stage, there's a chance that number can rise further yet.

An outstanding all-round performance by Amelia Kerr led New Zealand to their first ever Women's T20 World Cup title as they beat South Africa by a commanding 32 runs in Sunday's final in Dubai.

Player of the Match Kerr top-scored with 43 as New Zealand posted an imposing 158-5 in their 20 overs before taking 3-24, and crucially picking up the key wickets of Laura Wolvaardt and Anneke Bosch, to restrict South Africa to 126-9 in their 20 overs.

It marked a sweet finish to skipper Sophie Devine's career.

The victory came 14 years after the White Ferns lost to Australia by just three runs in the 2010 final. They also lost to England in the 2009 championship match.

For South Africa it made for a double disappointment having lost last year's final to Australia in Cape Town.

After being put in to bat by South Africa captain Wolvaardt, the New Zealand openers began aggressively with Georgia Plimmer smashing two fours in the first over from Marizanne Kapp.

Plimmer fell for nine but Suzie Bates, playing in her 334th international, kept the scoreboard ticking over until she was bowled by Nonkululeko Mlaba for 32 from 31 balls.

When Devine was leg before to Nadine de Klerk on review, the innings appeared to be faltering but the arrival of Brooke Halliday lifted the tempo as she added 57 in seven overs with Kerr for the fourth wicket.

Halliday hit three boundaries in her 38 but was dismissed when she picked out Bosch on the midwicket boundary.

Kerr slammed back-to-back boundaries off Mlaba before finding Tazmin Brits to fall for 43 from 38 balls.

Maddy Green, however, maintained the momentum with 12 off six balls including the only six of the innings.

Wolvaardt (33) and Brits (17) got South Africa off to a roaring start bringing up the 50 in the seventh over before Brits attempted to hit Fran Jonas over long-on only to find the safe hands of Green lying in wait.

With Bosch struggling to get going, Wolvaardt showed her frustration by lashing the first ball of Kerr's second over to Bates at wide mid-off.

When a review concluded that Bosch had edged the last ball of the over to Isabella Gaze, South Africa had slumped to 64-3 and New Zealand were in command.

With the required run rate rising, South Africa's middle and lower order, who have barely batted in this tournament, struggled to get going with wickets tumbling at regular intervals.

Kerr took a catch to remove Nadine de Klerk and then claimed a third wicket when Bates, arguably the outstanding fielder at the tournament, took her third catch of the innings to remove Annerie Dercksen. She finished with a tournament-leading 15 wickets.

The last pair held out for the final over but could not prevent New Zealand from celebrating their first title.

South Africa's bid to lift a first major cricket trophy could come down to whether they can finally shed the unwanted tag of "chokers" and the latest test of their nerves will be against Afghanistan in Wednesday's Twenty20 World Cup semifinal.

The Proteas have competed in seven semifinals over both short format World Cups but have never reached a title match, although they will be happy to avoid Australia this time around having lost to them three times in the last four.

The perennial under-achievers of international cricket are on a hot streak, with solid bowling displays helping them power through the group and Super Eight stages.

Their batting has impressed Aiden Markram less, however, and the South Africa captain is looking to that area for improvement ahead of their semifinal in Trinidad.

"We've been doing really well and the bowling unit has been firing for us, which has been fantastic," Markram said after his team ended the campaign of co-hosts West Indies in a shootout for a semifinal spot on Sunday.

"From a batting point of view, we need to be more clinical. Understanding when the right time is to really take the game on, and maybe understanding when the right time is to knock around for a couple of overs."

South Africa will be encouraged by how several players have stepped up in tense situations to keep their 100% record intact after seven matches so far and they will eye another collective effort to subdue Afghanistan.

"We haven't played our best game of cricket yet," Markram said.

"So we'll try and put our best game of cricket together for that semifinal."

After stunning Australia in their penultimate Super Eight match, the plucky Afghans ensured the 2021 champions were sent packing from the tournament with a dramatic eight-run win over Bangladesh on Monday to join India in advancing from Group 1.

Afghanistan's maiden World Cup semifinal appearance is a sign of how much the sport has grown in the war-torn country and skipper Rashid Khan's side, who also upset New Zealand earlier in the tournament, will target another statement victory.

They failed to register a single win in the last edition of the tournament but were still tipped to make the last four this time around by West Indies great Brian Lara, after whom the Tarouba venue for the semifinal is named.

"Everyone back home is so happy for this big achievement for us being in the semifinal," Rashid said.

"The only guy who put us in the semifinals was Brian Lara, we proved that right. When we met him at a welcome party, I told him 'we won't let you down'."

Rahmanullah Gurbaz has been a key player for Afghanistan, leading the scoring table with 281 runs, and his three century opening stands with Ibrahim Zadran have proved invaluable.

Fazalhaq Farooqi leads the bowling charts with 16 wickets while Rashid has 14, and the pair will be heavily relied upon to pull off yet another upset in Trinidad.

Should Afghanistan prevail, they will play the winners of the other semifinal between 2007 champions India and holders England, who face off in Guyana on Thursday.

"Being in the semi is big for us," Rashid added. "But we have to go with a very clear mind and know what we have done so far which has worked for us. Keep things simple for ourselves and make sure we enjoy that big occasion."

Afghanistan underlined their growing status as the dark horses of the 2024 T20 World Cup with a seven-wicket victory over Papua New Guinea on Thursday to advance to the Super Eight phase of the competition and send New Zealand crashing out.

Fazalhaq Farooqi added another three victims to his tournament-leading wicket tally as PNG were bundled out for 95 off 19.5 overs batting first in the Group C match at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad.

Afghanistan stumbled early in reply, losing both openers cheaply for the first time in the tournament but eventually reached the target for the loss of three wickets in the 16th over for a third win in a row.

Gulbadin Naib, dropped on nine by wicketkeeper Kiplin Doriga off medium-pacer Alei Nao, took his team to the target with an unbeaten 49 in an unbroken fourth-wicket partnership of 46 with Mohammad Nabi (16 not out). Afghanistan finished on 101-3 off 15.1 overs.

Theresult confirms Afghanistan's place, together with hosts West Indies, in the next round while at the same time eliminating New Zealand, who still have two group matches to play.

Left-arm seamer Farooqi spearheaded another impressive Afghan bowling effort, taking two quick wickets after PNG captain Assad Vala inadvertently opened the door for his opponents when he was carelessly run out in the second over of the match.

Two more run outs followed and Farooqi returned in the 19th over to claim another scalp to finish with three for 16 before a fourth run out ended the innings.

He now has 12 wickets in the tournament, four more than the trio of South African pacer Anrich Nortje, fast bowler Alzarri Joseph of the West Indies and Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa.

To their credit, the Papuans showed a willingness to fight after slipping to 50 for seven in the 13th over as Doriga, who topscored with 27, and Alei Nao (13) put on 38 for the eighth wicket before Farooqi, inevitably, separated them.

A production line in a warehouse in western Afghanistan churns out 24 energy drinks every second, feeding a thirst for the tonic used to mask life's hardships and lift wilting spirits.

The Taliban government has purged many signs of Western influence but a stimulant drink craze that arrived with US soldiers remains, and has even sprouted a thriving domestic industry.

Alcohol is outlawed in Afghanistan but caffeine-rich energy drinks are consumed by all, from secret police to children, and advertised on billboards more than even Taliban state propaganda.

Many homegrown brand names evoke the bygone war: "Commando", "Attack", and "Predator".

"It's obvious that there are more struggles and hardships of life among the youth here," said Milad Ghaznavi at a Herat city supermarket aisle that boasted 40 varieties of the beverage.

"Energy drinks have become kind of a habit and a craving for people," Ghaznavi told AFP.

"They consume anything that comforts them," said the 19-year-old, who claimed he had been "addicted" but gave them up for health reasons.

'We drink energy'

Energy drinks, which are high in caffeine and sugar and often more available than drinking water at roadside kiosks, are seen by many Afghans as a way to supplement an insufficient diet.

Nearly 90 percent of people in poverty-stricken Afghanistan are consuming inadequate food, according to the World Food Programme (WFP).

Most recent data from March reveals 86 percent of households are relying on less-preferred and cheaper food, with more than a third reducing meals and more than half reducing portions.

Gulzar, a labourer, fuels his 14-hour work days with four cans of "Hit".

"We work here, we sweat, so when we are tired we drink energy," said the 40-year-old, who goes by one name.

"If you don't drink you are tired, you have a headache, you are weary."

But drinking that many energy drinks comes with a cost.

Health impacts

Gulzar's diet contains over 100 grams of sugar -- twice the intake the World Health Organization recommends -- as well as a caffeine hit equivalent to six espressos, which he compares to a smoking habit.

Excessive caffeine consumption can cause high blood pressure, heart palpitations, anxiety and insomnia, according to the US Food and Drug Administration.

But Gulzar says he has no choice.

"Afghanistan is below impoverished," he said. "If we had the means we wouldn't use this."

Local brands cost only around 30 Afghani ($0.40) while imported Red Bull or Monster, two of the most popular global names, are unaffordable to most.

The poorest Afghans, who rely on dwindling foreign aid, are unable to buy energy drinks and instead subsist on bread with caffeinated green tea.

'Business is good'

Energy drinks were invented in Japan in 1962 but exploded in popularity during the 2000s into a global sector worth nearly $40 billion this year, according to research firm Future Market Insights.

In the industrial hub of western Herat, the Pamir Cola company says it produces over a million cans daily.

Still, Pamir Cola says it is a minor player in an industry it estimates produces two cans a day for each of Afghanistan's 40 million citizens.

The figure is impossible to verify because of the drought of data on Afghan commerce.

Workers at the company funnel sugar and citric acid into the bowels of a machine pumping out product every moment the electricity is on.

Pamir Cola says it manufactures to EU standards in a largely unregulated Afghan market left to its own devices.

While Red Bull affiliates with glamorous extreme sports and Monster with motorsports, Zahir Shah Bahaduri, who runs Pamir Cola with his two brothers, is under no illusions.

"For the people of Afghanistan who do hard labour duties and don't have good food, the best way for them is to drink energy drinks," said the 45-year-old.

"I think business is good and will probably get better."

By the side of a Kabul highway, enterprising vendors stack energy drinks high as the traffic roars past.

"It removes their tiredness," said 36-year-old Ahmad Gulab, who sometimes sells to customers by the crate. "It's their joy in life."