Sport

World Cup: Afghanistan stun England in major upset win

Published

1 year ago

October 15, 2023

Afghanistan registered a stunning 69-run win over England in the first major upset of the 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup.

Afghanistan bundled England out for 215 to script just their second Cricket World Cup win, eight years since their last against Scotland in Australia. This time, it was the defending champions at the receiving end.

Put in to bat on a wicket that had yielded big runs recently, Afghanistan mustered a decent total, but then outdid the England bowlers with their spin trio reigning over the famed English batting line-up.

After putting on a decent total on the board, Afghanistan needed early breakthroughs to really push England onto the backfoot and Fazalhaq Farooqi did just that by shaping one back into Jonny Bairstow to trap him in front for two.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman added to England's panic when a quicker one slid through quicker to nip out Joe Root's stumps. At 33/2, England were in early trouble and Afghanistan had their eyes set on something special.

With Dawid Malan gifting a simple catch to cover off Mohammad Nabi and Jos Buttler cleaned up by Naveen-ul-Haq after a jittery time in the middle, Afghanistan were well and truly on top before the 20th over.

They pressed England further immediately after with Rashid Khan snaring the big scalp of Liam Livingstone in the 21st over, leaving the defending champions reeling at 117/5.

Harry Brook held the England innings together, compiling his second ODI fifty and warding off the Rashid threat admirably, but he kept running out of partners. When Nabi sent back Sam Curran, caught at slip, with the score still under 150, Afghanistan had truly stamped their authority on the game.

Chris Woakes and Brook promised a revival with a secure stand, but Mujeeb broke through with a tight over at the end of which Woakes' stumps were pegged back.

Mujeeb came back to dismiss Brook and the rest of the line-up failed to counter the Afghanistan spinners as Afghanistan pulled off a memorable upset win.

Put in to bat, England were treated to a rampant Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who put the defending champions in defensive mode with an onslaught that saw Afghanistan race to 45 inside the first six overs.

With boundaries flooding from one end and Ibrahim Zadran blocking his end out pretty well on a flat wicket, the breakthrough just didn't come for England.

Flaying criticism around their slow powerplay starts, Afghanistan dug into England's bowling attack with Sam Curran being at the receiving end of Gurbaz's fury. The opener smashed him for two fours and a six in the ninth over that saw 20 runs coming.

Gurbaz soon completed a 33-ball fifty and celebrated it next over by upper-cutting Mark Wood over the third man fence with a sublime shot.

Adil Rashid eventually broke through for England, sending back Zadran in the 17th over. The batter's heave the leg-side was safely pouched by Joe Root at mid-wicket.

One brought another as Rahmat Shah was out stumped off Rashid in his next over. What was turning out to be a slight blip on their course soon turned into a mini-collapse as Gurbaz was run out the very next ball with skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi erring in his judgment of a single.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz played one of the shots of the tournament when he uppercut Mark Wood for a six during his fast-paced 80 in Delhi.

With Gurbaz gone for 80 and Afghanistan losing three wickets in three overs, England sensed an opening to come back into the game.

Part-time spinners Liam Livingstone and Joe Root struck in between some lusty hits from Azmatullah Omarzai and Ikram Ali Khil as Afghanistan lost half their side in the 33rd over with the score still under 200.

If England hoped to run through the lower middle-order, that didn't quite materialise with Ali Khil holding his end up quite well. Mark Wood bounced out Mohammad Nabi, but Rashid Khan curbed his instincts to ensure Ali Khil had decent company heading into the death overs.

It took a gem of a catch from Root near the ropes for England to break the 43-run stand between Ali Khil and Rashid with the latter falling to his namesake from the England side.

Mujeeb ur Rahman, though, got going for Afghanistan, slamming a sequence of four, four and six off Sam Curran to push Afghanistan late in the innings. Ali Khil joined him with some cracking shots too after his half-century.

England broke the stand before the final two overs with the wicket of Ali Khil and also prized out Mujeeb the first ball next over, but a competitive total had already been compiled. The 284 put on is Afghanistan's second-highest score in the Cricket World Cup.

Related Topics:#WorldCup Afganistan ArianaNews england featured

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Afghanistan to tour Zimbabwe for all-format series

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said the tour will take place from December 9 to January 6

Published

3 days ago

November 3, 2024

Ariana News

AfghanAtalan will tour Zimbabwe next month for an all-format series that will feature two Test matches, three ODIs and three T20Is.

According to the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) the tour will take place from December 9 to January 6.

First up will be a three-match T20I series to be played on December 9, 11 and 12 at the Harare Sports Club.

This will be followed by a three-match ODI series on December 15, 17, and 19 at the same venue.

The tour will conclude with a two-match Test series in Bulawayo, with the first Test scheduled from December 26 to 30 and the second from January 2 to 6.

Mirwais Ashraf, Chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, said in a statement that “this year (2024) has been quite productive for us both domestically and internationally, and we’ve had good achievements.

“We are committed to striving hard and adding more bilateral cricket to our calendar in the next year and bringing more glory to our nation,” he said.

“The all-format tour to Zimbabwe is a significant event for us. We have a rich history with Zimbabwe, and playing there has always been challenging, but it’s a challenge I believe the AfghanAtalan can face confidently,” he added.

Zimbabwe Cricket’s Chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani said December 26 and January 1 “Test matches are iconic cricket fixtures that we are delighted to be adding to our calendar this festive season and we are looking forward to celebrating in style one of the finest traditions in the sport’s long history.

“Before the Test series, scheduled for Bulawayo, we will start off with some T20I and ODI action in Harare to complete a full tour, a clear demonstration of our commitment to improve our game across all formats.

“Matches between Zimbabwe and Afghanistan are always intense and exciting affairs and we have no doubt the players will once again serve up some great entertainment befitting such a historic tour.”

The AfghanAtalan squad will arrive in Zimbabwe on December 6, where they will have two practice sessions before the first T20I match on December 9.

Sport

Bangladesh announce squad for ODI series against Afghanistan, Shanto to continue as captain

Published

4 days ago

November 2, 2024

Ariana News

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Friday announced its squad for the upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan. Najmul Hossain Shanto, who had expressed his desire to quit captaincy following the South Africa Tests, has been named the captain for the series.

The announcement follows the discussion between Shanto and BCB president Faruque Ahmed on Thursday evening, as Shanto had informed the board of his reluctance to continue as Bangladesh's all-format captain.

Bangladesh are without Shakib Al Hasan, who Faruque said voluntarily pulled out of reckoning for this ODI series. Litton Das is also missing due to fever which kept him out of the Chattogram Test against South Africa.

Pacer Nahid Rana is the only uncapped player in the squad, which sees the return of opener Zakir Hasan and left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed.

Zakir has featured in only one ODI, while Nasum's last 50-over game came in the ODI World Cup in India last year.

Anamul Haque, Taijul Islam and Hasan Mahmud have not found places in the squad with Mahmud missing due to a shoulder injury. Wicketkeeper batter Litton Das also misses out due to fever.

The ODI series will kick start on November 6, followed by the second and third games on November 9 and 11. All the matches will take place at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Bangladesh's ODI squad for Afghanistan:

Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Zakir Hasan, Nazmul Hossain Shanto (capt), Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah Riyad, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana

Sport

Rashid Khan retained by Gujrat Titans ahead of IPL 2025 auction

“No T20 team would be complete without a world-class spinner, and we are fortunate to have one of the very best in Rashid Khan,” Gujrat Titans said in a news release.

Published

5 days ago

November 1, 2024

Ariana News

Afghan cricket star Rashid Khan has been retained by the Indian Premier League side Gujrat Titans ahead of the auction.

Khan has been retained for 180 million Indian rupees (approx. $2.14 million).

“No T20 team would be complete without a world-class spinner, and we are fortunate to have one of the very best in Rashid Khan,” Gujrat Titans said in a news release.

“Rashid started weaving his magic right from the outset in our first season, where he returned with 19 wickets. He upped the ante in 2023 with 27 wickets, which includes a spectacular hat-trick against Kolkata Knight Riders. Rashid also became the first player to cross 50 wickets for our franchise during the 2024 season,” according to the news release.

“Also not to forget, he underlines his value as an all-rounder with remarkable contributions as a batter - let it be those last ball finishes against SRH in 2022 or PBKS in 2024, or the unforgettable night in 2023 at Wankhede where he smashed his highest T20 score,” it added.

Rashid Khan was picked by Gujrat Titans before the auction in 2022, when the franchise had just entered the IPL. He got 150 million Indian rupees ($1.78 million) then.

Other players retained by Gujrat Titans are Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan and Rahul Tewatia.

IPL auction will take place in November or December.