It was a historic day for Afghanistan cricket as they secured only their second World Cup victory by defeating one of the tournament favorites. The defending champions had a disappointing performance both in batting and bowling, but credit must go to Afghanistan for their hard-earned win.
It was a collective team effort, and they have every reason to celebrate. Gurbaz›s impressive 80 at the beginning of their innings not only provided a strong start but also reinforced Afghanistan›s belief in their ability to compete against a champion team like England.
Despite a slight stumble in the middle overs, they quickly regrouped. Valuable contributions from lower-order batsmen helped them reach a competitive total of 284.
The pitch appeared favorable for batting, although defending against England›s strong batting lineup was still a challenging task. A good start with the ball was crucial, and that›s precisely what they achieved.
Farooqi managed to dismiss Bairstow early with an LBW, and Root›s ongoing struggle in powerplays continued as he lost his wicket to Mujeeb. Following the setback of two early wickets, Brook and Malan aimed to stabilize the innings, but Nabi›s experience and cleverness led to Malan›s dismissal, caught at short cover while attempting a delivery skillfully bowled by Nabi.
The entire team just manages to score 215 runs. It is a massive upset of the tournament.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman was declared player of the match for his tremendous performance.
Earlier, England won the toss and opted to ball first at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi. Afghanistan got off to a flying start as their opener, Gurbaz, thumped England pacers and clattered their deliveries for big shots.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz›s carnage and Mujeeb Ur Rahman›s firework at the Arun Jaitley Stadium propelled Afghanistan to 284 against England in their ICC Men›s Cricket World Cup 2023 match in Delhi on Sunday.
Gurbaz played an inning of 80 runs, while Mujeeb slammed 28 off 16 and Ikram Alikhil scored a crucial 58 to help Afghanistan post a competitive total of 284.
For England, Adil Rashid bagged three and Mark Wood took two wickets to help the defending champions skittle out Afghanistan.
Opener Ibrahim Zadran also opened his hands, and the duo took their team›s total beyond 50 runs in just the 7th over of the game.
Gurbaz, in red-hot form, smoked Sam Curran for 20 runs with the help of two boundaries and one maximum.