Afghanistan in race for semis after easy win over Netherlands
Cricket
Afghanistan have surpassed Pakistan on points table to secure fifth spot
LUCKNOW (Web Desk) – Afghanistan on Friday beat the Netherlands by seven wickets in Lucknow, surpassing Pakistan on the points table for the World Cup 2023.
Afghanistan’s start for the 180-run target chase was unimpressive as openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran could not build a strong stand. Logan van Beek and Roelof van der Merwe were the Netherlands bowlers with wickets to their name.
Rahmat Shah (52) and Hashmatullah Shahidi (48) stood tall for Afghanistan at the 20-over mark of their innings.
After Shah was removed by Saqib Zulfiqar, Azmat Omarzai joined Shahidi at the crease and the pair sealed victory for their side with 111 balls to spare.
Earlier, Netherlands set a target of 180 runs for Afghanistan. A series of run outs plagued the Netherlands after a bright start from their top order batters. Netherlands's new opening pair didn't last too long at the crease as the pinpoint accuracy of Mujeeb Ur Rahman accounted for Barresi in the very first over. He trapped the veteran Dutch batter lbw for 3.
Later, Max O'Dowd and Colin Ackermann were positive as they made 42 and 29, respectively. Sybrand Engelbrecht joined O’Dowd at the crease after Ackermann was dismissed. He made 58 to boost the total.
After their dismissal, no player from middle and tail order could recover from the pressure as the were bowled out for 179 runs.
Pre-match Coverage
Both, Afghanistan and Netherlands are still in the race to reach the knockout stages of the world cup following early triumphs over top-four contenders and clinical wins in their last start.
A fourth victory here for Afghanistan would have them draw level on eight points with both Australia and New Zealand in third and fourth-place, and firmly in the mix for a spot in the knockout stages.
With only two wins so far, Netherlands have a trickier path to the semi-finals but could give their chances a huge boost with two points from this crunch clash.
The sides have only met in nine previous ODIs with Netherlands winning the first of those in 2009 but only coming out on top once more in 2012.
Afghanistan won all three of their encounters in Doha at the start of last year when batting first and holding Netherlands at arm’s length in the chase, but the stakes are much higher this time for the two emerging sides both in good form.
The inspirational Netherlands skipper Scott Edwards has led the way for his side while showing that he well and truly belongs on the big stage during the showpiece event in India.
Edwards has 204 runs at an average of 51 in Netherlands’ six matches to date, including fifties in both of their victories so far at the Cricket World Cup.
The keeper-batter top-scored with 78* to play a pivotal role in Netherlands’ shock triumph over South Africa, and was again the leading run-scorer with 68 in the win over Bangladesh.
Edwards will hope for more support in the clash with Afghanistan but can expect to put Netherlands in with a shot of a third victory if he is again among the runs.
For Afghanistan, explosive opening pair Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran might put fear in the hearts of opposition bowlers, but it is often left to Hashmatullah Shahidi to deliver the knockout blow.
The Afghanistan captain looked assured when steering his side home with an unbeaten 48* to clinch a historic victory over Pakistan that breathed life into their campaign.
Shahidi then backed it up with another unbeaten knock of 58* as Afghanistan put themselves right in the hunt for a semi-final berth with an emphatic win over Sri Lanka.
The left-hander has 226 runs at an average of 56.5 at the Cricket World Cup and now looms as the linchpin to Afghanistan’s hopes of a late surge to the knockout stages.
Squads
Netherlands: Scott Edwards (c), Max O'Dowd, Bas de Leede, Vikram Singh, Teja Nidamanuru, Paul van Meekeren, Colin Ackermann, Roelof van der Merwe, Logan van Beek, Aryan Dutt, Ryan Klein, Wesley Barresi, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmad, Sybrand Engelbrecht.
Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abdul Rahman, Naveen ul Haq
