If Ibrahim Zadran had been thinking about the five runs he’d left out there during his matchwinning 95 not out from 56 balls against Canada, the sound of 18,393 people erupting as he completed a catch might have acted as a bit of a balm.

Half a hour after missing out on a hundred but only seconds before settling under the steepler, Zadran was received like royalty by the fans facing the long-on boundary. He had to indulge them. So out came a wave, which brought a roar. The cricket interrupted this love-fest as Nicholas Kirton tonked one in the air.

The crowd waited for Ibrahim to get the ball under control, but as soon as he did, they got their hands on some confetti – maybe it was one of those boards with 4 and 6 written on them all torn to bits – and threw it up in the air.

Chennai at this T20 World Cup has been such a vibe. Ticket prices starting at INR 250 have encouraged the fans to pack the cheap seats at Chepauk. The first match of the tournament here between Afghanistan and New Zealand attracted 24,991 people. India’s first game at Wankhede was only marginally better attended, at 28,726.

The 2023 ODI World Cup opener, which was a rematch of the previous edition’s epic final, had been played in front of what looked like an almost empty stadium. There were plenty in at Ahmedabad that day, but in that giant cauldron it didn’t feel festive. Here, in between overs, lines of kids wearing Virat 18 and Rohit 45 and Dhoni 7 and Rashid 19 shirts were dancing to Ajith songs in exactly the way he had in his Tamil movies. When it was time for the game to resume, they sat down and fed off the action in the same way they had the music.

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Ibrahim gave them plenty to vibe off. He is a total knockout of a player. Straight lines. Sweet extensions. And as he approached three-figures, there was a kind of buzz in the air. Expectation taking up some of the room usually reserved for oxygen and nitrogen.

In 125 T20s in Chennai, there have only been nine hundreds. Ibrahim, too, looked a long way off when he had 31 off 24 at the end of the ninth over. He wasn’t exactly struggling, more like setting himself up, and once he flicked the switch he was off. Canada trying to york him didn’t stop him. Canada trying to hide the ball away from him didn’t stop him. Ansh Patel could have done if Kaleem Sana had held onto a relatively simple catch at long-on. But Ibrahim survived and then thrived. He scored 40 runs in 18 balls from that point.

The six he hit over extra cover off Dilon Heyliger in the 19th over, on bent knee, reaching way out into the off side to make contact with the ball, may as well have been a visual representation of how fed up Afghanistan are of things being just beyond their reach. The Super Eight for example.

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Jonathan Trott spoke wistfully of those what-ifs. Ibrahim dedicated his Player-of-the-Match award to his outgoing coach. Later, he spoke to the media about Trott’s influence on the team, of his inputs which ranged from technical to tactical to mental. Somewhere in there must have been a lesson about enjoying life’s good moments. Ibrahim certainly took that to heart as he soaked up the atmosphere in Chennai, while reflecting on the scene of one of the greatest days in Afghanistan’s history, against Pakistan at the 2023 World Cup.

“It was special,” he said. “Against Pakistan we won the game here. We beat them for the first time in 50 overs in the World Cup. That time they supported us. They encouraged us a lot. That day I became Player of the Match as well. Today also I become Player of the Match. Yeah, I enjoyed a lot when I was batting. Then when I went to deep mid-on, when I took the catch, they cheered me or, you know, the guys. I really enjoyed myself every time I’ve played here.”

Rashid Khan, at the pre-match press conference, had spoken about the team getting up for the next fight – the 2027 World Cup – and players taking more responsibility, making better decisions under pressure. Ibrahim did his bit on Friday, batting through the 20 overs and carrying the team to a win.