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WC2023: Gurbaz's brilliance and Ikram's grit lead Afghanistan to formidable 284 against England

Leg-spinner Adil Rashid picked up 3/42 for England

PTI New Delhi Published 15.10.23, 06:06 PM
Afghanistan's Mujeeb Ur Rahman celebrates after taking the wicket of England's Harry Brook, caught behind by Ikram Alikhil

Afghanistan's Mujeeb Ur Rahman celebrates after taking the wicket of England's Harry Brook, caught behind by Ikram Alikhil Reuters

  • And that's it. The last two wickets are picked by Rashid Khan who also completes his 3-wicket haul. England all out at 215. Afghanistan wins by 69 runs! What a great victory
  • Mujeeb strikes again, shattering England's last hope for victory as Harry Brook departs. The England dugout falls into a profound silence, their aspirations dwindling. This marks the third wicket for Mujeeb. England now stands on the precipice of losing, confronting a formidable challenge. The score remains at 169/8. The atmosphere is filled with despair
  • Mujeeb strikes once more, clean bowling Chris Woakes. England stands at 160/7 after 33 overs. All eyes are now on Harry Brook, the last hope for England in this chase. The pressure is immense, and his performance will be crucial in determining the outcome of the match
  • England crosses the 150-run mark, reaching 154/6 by the end of 31 overs. Harry Brook stands as the sole strength for England with an unbeaten 63. The question now looms: Can Chris Woakes support him in snatching the match from Afghan hands? The match's direction awaits revelation after the break
  • Another wicket falls for England as Sam Curran departs for 10, falling victim to Nabi's delivery. England is now at 138/6 after 27.1 overs, facing an increasingly challenging task in their pursuit of the target. The pressure continues to mount, and they require a remarkable effort to turn the tide
  • A brilliant half-century by Harry Brook under immense pressure! The hopes of England's successful chase now rest on him and Sam Curran, who is on the crease alongside him. They need to anchor the innings and steer England towards the target. Exciting times ahead in this crucial phase of the match. England 138/5 after 27 overs
  • Rashid Khan strikes with precision! Livingstone struggles to make an impact, missing a sliding delivery. The ball hits him plump on the front pad, prompting an unsuccessful review. England is in dire straits at 119/5 after 21 overs, their battle to stay in the game intensifying
  • Afghanistan strikes again! Jos Buttler is clean bowled by Naveen-ul-Haq, departing for just 9 runs. The struggle continues for England as they reach the 100-run mark with significant difficulty. The score inches to 105/4 after 18 overs. The pressure is mounting, and a resilient effort is needed from hereon
  • England is at 82/3 after 16 overs. The partnership of Harry Brook and Jos Buttler holds the key for England. The team looks forward to this duo to stabilize the innings and build a solid platform for their chase. A crucial phase in the match awaits
  • Another blow for England! The dangerous Dawid Malan, who was looking good, falls to Nabi's delivery. England is now 69/3 after 13 overs, facing increasing pressure and needing a solid partnership to revive their innings
  • After 10 overs, England is struggling at 55 runs for the loss of 2 wickets. The Afghan bowlers are maintaining tight control, making scoring difficult for the English batsmen. England needs a substantial partnership to stabilise their innings and chase down the target
  • Disaster strikes for England! Mujeeb's destructive delivery shatters Joe Root's stumps. The Afghan bowlers are making their presence felt. England is now 33/2 after 7 overs, facing a mounting challenge in this crucial chase
  • An early setback for England as Fazalhaq Farooqi traps Bairstow, LBW. The disappointment looms large as Bairstow heads back to the pavilion. England stands at 22/1 after 5 overs, a challenging start to their pursuit of 285 for victory.
  • England start their chase. England has successfully chased down 250! score only twice in the ODI World Cup

Rahmanullah Gurbaz gave early impetus while Ikram Alikhil provided the final flourish to guide Afghanistan to a competitive 284 allout against defending champions England in their World Cup match here on Sunday.

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While opener Gurbaz gave the Afghans a flying start, scoring 80 off 57 balls, number 6 batter Alikhil made a solid 58 off 66 deliveries as Afghanistan recovered from a mid-innings collapse to post a good total on board.

Off-colour in the first two matches, Afghanistan openers -- Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran (28) finally rose to the occasion, scoring the team's 50 in just 6.3 overs after being sent in to bat.

The Afghan openers meant business and played copy book cricketing shots to score their runs. The duo didn't take much risk and Gurbaz mainly ruled the roost, taking the attack to the English bowlers.

He played all around the park but his shots through the covers and flicks were a treat to watch. With Afghanistan scoring runs thick and fast, England skipper Jos Buttler introduced Adil Rashid (3/42) in the 11th over but Gurbaz was in a relentless mood as he swept the leg-spinner for a boundary to bring up his fifty in just 33 balls.

Gurbaz looked in ominous form as he dispatched Rashid over deep midwicket to bring up Afghanistan's 100 in just 76 deliveries.

England finally tasted their first success in the 17th over when an under-pressure Zadran (28 off 48) gave a simple catch to Joe Root at short mid wicket but not before stitching 114 for the opening wicket.

England got back into the game an over later with back-to-back wickets.

First Rashid dismissed Rahmat Shah, stumped by Buttler and then in the very next ball Afghanistan suffered a big blow in the form of Gurbaz, who became a victim of an unnecessary run out. Gurbaz decorated his innings with eight boundaries and four sixes.

Following Gurbaz's dismissal, runs started to dry up for Afghanistan as skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi and Azmatullah Omarzai looked to revive the innings.

Omarzai tried to break the shackles in the 25th over, cloberring Chris Woakes for a six and four.

But the knock was shortlived as Omarzai departed in the next over, slicing a Liam Livingstone delivery to Woakes at long off as Afghanistan lost four wickets for just 38 runs.

Shahidi too didn't last long, bowled by an unlikely Root with the Afghan skipper caught in two minds.

Veteran Mohammad Nabi too didn't help his side, departing soon as the Afghans slumped to 190 for 6 from a commanding position.

Alikhil played a fine knock and decorated his innings with three fours and two sixes. Rashid Khan played a quick 22-ball 23, while Mujeeb Ur Rahman made 28 off 16 balls before Afghanistan were bowled out in 49.5 overs

Scorecard
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz run out 80 Ibrahim Zadran c Root b Adil Rashid 28 Rahmat Shah st Jos Buttler b Adil Rashid 3 Hashmatullah Shahidi b Root 14 Azmatullah Omarzai c Chris Woakes b Livingstone 19 Ikram Alikhil c Sam Curran b R Topley 58 Mohammad Nabic Root b Mark Wood 9 Rashid Khan c Root b Adil Rashid 23 Mujeeb Ur Rahman c Root b Mark Wood 28 Naveen-ul-Haqrun out 5 Fazalhaq Farooqi not out 2

Extras: (lb-1, w-11, nb-3) 15

Total: 284 all out in 49.5 overs

Fall of wickets: 114-1, 122-2, 122-3, 152-4, 174-5, 190-6, 233-7, 277-8, 277-9

Bowling: Chris Woakes 4-0-41-0, Reece Topley 8.5-1-52-1, Sam Curran 4-0-46-0, Adil Rashid 10-1-42-3, Mark Wood 9-0-50-2, Liam Livingstone 10-0-33-1, Joe Root 4-0-19-1. PTI More AH AH

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.

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