Pakistan’s openers showed tremendous aggression early in their innings. Imam-Ul-Haq hit one off to his leg side for a single, while Babar Azam cut a full one onto the offside for three runs.
Afghanistan’s spin trio of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman will present Pakistan with an immense challenge at a ground known for being slow bowlers’ paradise. If Pakistan are to catch Australia and advance up the rankings table, they need a huge victory to notch one up against Afghanistan. In this article, we will discuss the main points of Pakistan national cricket team vs Afghanistan national cricket team match scorecard.
Pakistan vs Afghanistan
Pakistan were determined not to concede an easy win to their neighbours Afghanistan and Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran struck up an impressive opening partnership that put Afghanistan into great shape for victory.
Few mistakes cost them the game as they fell into difficulty at one stage. Noor Ahmed trapped Ibrahim Zadran LBW off review to leave Afghanistan struggling with 13 runs needed to win and despair on their batsmen’s faces was apparent. Afghanistan will hope to fight back strongly in their next two matches and meet India for the gold medal on 7 October; stay tuned for updates!
Pakistan batting first
Pakistan openers have made a cautious start to their innings. Imam-ul-Haq faced short balls for the first time ever this competition and drove an offside full one past mid-on for four runs.
Abdullah Shafique and Mujeeb ur Rahman of Afghanistan have joined in, looking to find boundaries regularly under Chennai conditions. Mujeeb’s spin has allowed only three wides per over so far.
Afghanistan batting second
Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi formed an outstanding partnership to assist Afghanistan in easily reaching their target. These two have scored three successive fifties while playing some responsible cricket here.
Babar Azam was Pakistan’s inaugural wicket of its innings. After missing several straightforward shots and being caught at deep point by Noor Ali Zasran, he eventually met his end at deep point.
Haris Rauf bowls his second over and records three wides.
Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah continue to add runs, hoping for another upset here at Chepauk – having defeated England and New Zealand previously – by selecting smart shots. With more than 100 runs still to win in their Super Over, Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah look poised to bring this game to an end with ease.
Afghanistan bowling first
Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and sent Afghanistan into bat on an attractive pitch. Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran began well with an impressive opening stand; both batters fell just short of scoring 100 runs each though.
Rashid Khan has been bowling well recently and should have an opportunity to pick up wickets here. Mujeeb ur Rahman is also in fine form but will need help from the middle-order for any success to materialize.
Afghanistan bowling second
Pakistan beat Afghanistan by just one wicket and one ball to secure victory and take the series 2-0. Naseem Shah took the final wicket to ensure their win.
Afghan openers Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq shared a 56-run partnership during the powerplay after Pakistan captain Babar Azam won the toss and chose to bat first at Chepauk. But Afghanistan spinners Naveen-ul-Haq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi bowled well to contain their innings; then came an impressive effort from lower order young Noor Ahmad claimed three wickets on World Cup debut for Afghanistan while Azam hit an innings worth 74 off 92 balls before their chase stalled at middle overs.
Afghanistan batting third
Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq got Afghanistan off to a strong start as they amassed 60 runs in the first powerplay without losing any wicket. Shaheen Afridi leaked some runs but the batsmen overcame his weakness to score freely.
Tabraiz Shamsi had no difficulty dismantling Afghanistan’s lower order with three wickets from one spell by trapping Karim Janat, Noor Ahmad and Naveen-ul-Haq with his spin lbw in quick succession.
Nabi attempts to sweep a full toss from Mukesh but the ball deflects off his pads towards long on fielder for a bye – marking Mukesh’s maiden over.
Afghanistan bowling fourth
Gudakesh Motie bowled an inswinging full toss on off, Rahmat shrugged it off and hit it late into the off side for four. Afghanistan started their innings off well requiring 11 off 19 balls.
Fazalhaq was unbeatable with his ball. After allowing Uganda opener Ronak Patel to hit some fours, he struck again with his next two deliveries to remove both Patel and Roger Mukasa from play.
Fakhar and Imam looked set for an impressive total with some powerful shots from Fakhar and Imam; however, Gulbadin Naib and Noor Ahmad kept the run-rate below five and prevented Pakistan from posting an acceptable total. Now at Chepauk, their batsmen will aim for an encouraging finish; victory could help increase their chances of qualifying for Super 8, while defeat would be devastating blow.
Afghanistan batting fifth
Afghans will surely be devastated. What was once an exciting match of cricket was taken from them with such ease thanks to Naseem Shah’s dramatic finish.
Afghanistan require 11 out of 18 now; Rahmat hits it full to mid-on for six, two more needed now.
Haris Rauf bowled an accurate length ball wide of off, which Azmatullah attempted to defend from within his crease but missed. Instead, it ended up landing in covers where Agha Salman quickly took an easy catch.
Afghanistan bowling sixth
Afghanistan showed in an exciting match full of twists and turns that they can seriously challenge Pakistan with their bat, providing a masterclass with each batsmen delivering a brilliant innings and making Pakistan work for every run they scored.
Rahmat Shah stood tall as an anchor, scoring some fine and well-timed boundaries that set up an innings-saving stand. Even after being given out on review for an LBW appeal on 46, he continued his runscoring streak and scored another 26 runs from 36 deliveries.
Haris Rauf to Azmatullah Omarzai: FOUR! Omarzai leans into it on the off side and smashes it through covers for four runs!
Afghanistan openers Mohammad Shahzad and Noor Ali Zadran have made some headway in their chase but the run rate is starting to unravel fast. Afsar Zazai walks in now as Pakistan bowlers try their hardest to take wickets here – these contests have always been exciting!
Afghanistan batting seventh
Naseem Shah struck an incredible six off Fazalhaq Farooqi to win Pakistan the match and advance them into the quarter-finals of World Cup 2023.
Babar Azam made an impressive World Cup debut for Afghanistan but his side needed faster scoring rates to remain competitive in this matchup. Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran hit some crucial boundaries during their respective powerplay overs.
But they quickly found themselves in trouble: Gurbaz fell in the fourth over and Zadran in the sixth over, forcing India to go slow while rotating strike rotation and add only 61 runs over their final 10 overs; though late surge helped post a respectable total; India were in danger of collapse when Yadav joined Pandya to save them at 62-3; thanks to Yadav-Pandya pairing India back into contention in their innings totalling 173 for 6.
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