New Delhi, February 16 Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott said on Monday that he has noticed a clear shift in his team's mental resilience after they bounced back from a heartbreaking defeat against South Africa to register their first win of the T20 World Cup.
Afghanistan had suffered a double Super Over loss to South Africa but responded with a five-wicket victory over the UAE to keep their slim Super Eights hopes alive.
"The UAE played really well, and we were under pressure, but that's the pleasing thing for me as a coach. What I would have liked would have been a lot easier, yes, but at the end of the day, when you come out on the right side of pressure situations, like we were, having the history of the last game, I've certainly seen a shift," Trott told reporters.
"We've lost tight games like that, and then after that, it's very much been hard to regain the confidence. I see a bit of an improvement in resilience, both cricketing-wise and mentally."
Trott said there is still room for growth but was pleased with the progress.
"Sure, there's a lot of work still to be done, and that's going to be exciting to watch, but I'm really pleased the guys can come away and we can go off to Chennai really excited about playing a proper game against Canada with a bit of confidence."
Several Afghan players compete in the ILT20 and are familiar with the UAE side, and Trott felt that experience helped.
"The UAE side is very underrated. We've played quite a bit of cricket against them and know the players quite well because we've played a lot of cricket in that part of the world. But we were under pressure today and we came through it, which is really good, especially after the disappointment of the game against South Africa."
He said the maturity shown by senior players stood out.
"For me, as a coach, that's always pleasing to see the development, the maturity mentally as well of guys like Azmat and Nabi, and hopefully that rubs off, and the younger generations can see exactly how to handle the pressure and what options to play under certain circumstances," he said.
Afghanistan produced an improved death-bowling effort, conceding 46 runs and picking up four wickets in the last five overs to restrict the UAE to 160 for 9.
"Death bowling, I think that's a huge area at the moment. Certainly here on a small ground like Delhi, it's quite tough. You've got to get it right, and I think variations are crucial.
"There were areas when we bowled earlier on that we were nowhere near up to standard with the newer ball. But at the end, you can see when you get it right and bowl to a plan, it's actually quite tough on these wickets.
"If they had gone in and scored an extra 10 runs in the last two overs, it would have been a very different game. So that's what I said to the guys at the drinks break after 14 overs. We've got to limit the damage and make the job easier for ourselves in the second innings."
Trott also praised Ibrahim Zadran, who anchored the chase with a 53 after two low scores.
"Yeah, it was great strength. He obviously had two disappointing performances for him. But the strength of Ibrahim is he'll always be able to bounce back and play good cricket shots.
"Losing early wickets but being able to hold his nerve and show mental strength, I think that would be a real credit to him."
On the need for more fixtures against stronger nations, Trott said broader exposure would aid development.
"Obviously, I would like a lot more bilateral series, also away from the UAE or the subcontinent, learning to play in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and West Indies.
"Playing against different teams outside the subcontinent would be fantastic for the development of the side. So I'd be all for that, and I'd like to see that in the new Future Tours Programme."