Afghanistan stunned not only the West Indies, but the entire cricketing world by fighting their way to a thrilling six-run over the Group 1 toppers in Nagpur on Sunday. After giving South Africa and England a scare earlier, Asghar Stanikzai's men finally managed to cross over the line, registering a historic victory.

For all their swagger throughout the World Twenty20 2016, the West Indies, sans Chris Gayle, could not chase down a paltry target of 124 against the supposed minnows of the game. The result meant Darren Sammy's side's unbeaten run in the tournament was broken, although they still managed to top Group 1 on net run-rate, over England.

Sammy won the toss and decided to bowl, not wanting to divert from a winning strategy – West Indies had won all their previous group matches batting second. On a slow track, Afghanistan put on 123/7 on the board in 20 overs, thanks to an unbeaten 48 from Najibullah Zadran. Samuel Badree (3/14) and Andre Russell (2/23) were the pick of the bowlers.

What should have been an easy chase – even without Gayle, who was rested – turned out to be a laborious one for the 2012 champions. The Windies slipped to 38/3, before Dwayne Bravo and Denesh Ramdin stitched together a 41-run partnership. However, once Bravo fell at the end of the 14th over with the score at 79/4, it all went downhill for the West Indies. The Afghan spinners, led by Rashid Khan (2/26), bamboozled the West Indian batsmen, restricting them to 117/8 at the end of their 20 overs.

The West Indies will face the winners of Sunday's other match between India and Australia in the semifinals.