Afghanistan was a underdog venturing into this World Cup. Their batsmen had previously failed to make any sort of a mark at international stage. Afghanistan was deemed to fail. No one would have suggested that this team would be able to win against the defending champion and Neighbouring Pakistan. Afghan team has done the impossible. It’s right said, “Cricket is a glorious game of uncertainty”. Moving forward into the tournament Afghanistan might challenge the mighty Australians or do the impossible by taking forward the campaign to the knockout matches.
IN SHORT
- lack of resources
- game sense
- world cup history
The maturity of top order batsmen to take single and doubles and rotate the strike. Afghan batters are now ready to take the fight on with the cricketing giants.
PLAYING XI AFGHANISTAN
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen-ul-Haq
PLAYING XI PAKISTAN
Imam ul Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (C), Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Usama Mir, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf
Cricket is game of attitude. The way players approach the game, sets the tone of the entire match. The best way to observe that, is the effort that the team puts on the field to save runs. Pakistani players did the same rookie mistake that England did by taking the Afghan team for granted. The misfield costed Pakistan the match.
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Afghanistan is the team that do not have the best resources. But, that did not stop the players to perform at their absolute best. Their domestic circuit is not even close to what Pakistan or Sri Lanka currently have.
Afghanistan for the first time in ODI history won against Pakistan. Ecstatic joy emerged as Afghani Skipper hit a four over Deep Square, declaring the arrival of the in-form Afghan team. The 8 wickets win against a quality bowling attack will surely lift the spirits of team going ahead in the tournament. The top order performed with absolute maturity and played the ball to the merit.
Pakistan Skipper said, “We had a good total, but in bowling, we were not up to the mark because we weren’t taking wickets in the middle overs. In a World Cup, if you are not good even in one department, you lose. We started well while bowling, but we couldn’t take wickets. All credit to Afghanistan. We are not playing good cricket, especially in bowling and fielding. The pitch was helping the spinners even in the second innings. There was no pressure on their batsmen.”
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