World Cup: Afghanistan score 272/8 against India; Bumrah takes four-fer
Afghanistan racked up 272/8 against India in match number nine of the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi led Afghanistan from the front with an 80-run knock. Meanwhile, Azmatullah Omarzai smashed a vital 62 in the middle overs. Jasprit Bumrah was the pick of India's bowlers, having taken four wickets. Hardik Pandya picked two wickets.
Afghanistan were 48/1 after 10 overs
Afghanistan had a decent start after electing to bat, with openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran adding 32 runs. Bumrah then gave India the first breakthrough in the form of Ibrahim Zadran in the seventh over. Gurbaz then smacked a couple of boundaries, taking Afghanistan to 48/1 in 10 overs, along with Rahmat Shah. Shardul Thakur bowled the first Powerplay's final over.
A record partnership for Afghanistan
Hardik, bowling his third over, dismissed Gurbaz, who was looking solid. In a matter of minutes, Thakur removed Shah, reducing Afghanistan to 63/3. This exposed Afghanistan skipper Shahidi and Omarzai in the middle. The duo added 121 runs, now the second-highest partnership for Afghanistan in the ODI World Cups. This is Afghanistan's only 100-run stand against India in ODI cricket.
Omarzai slams his second ODI fifty
Omarzai came to the middle after Afghanistan lost Zadran, Gurbaz, and Shah. Omarzai joined forces with Shahidi and took the Afghans forward. The duo took Afghanistan past 180. However, Hardik knocked Omarzai over in the 35th over. The latter smashed a 69-ball 62 (2 fours and 4 sixes), his second ODI fifty. In 15 ODIs, he has smashed 221 runs at 27.62.
Shahidi leads from the front
Shahidi played a captain's knock after Afghanistan were in a spot of bother. He smashed 80 off 88 balls, a knock laced with 8 fours and a six. Kuldeep Yadav put an end to Shahidi's innings by trapping him in front in the 43rd over. It was Shahidi's second half-century in ODI cricket. He got past 1,800 ODI runs with this knock.
Bumrah takes four wickets
Bumrah came out all guns blazing against Afghanistan. He first dismissed Zadran for 22 in the seventh over. His second wicket came in the form of Najibullah in the 45th over. Bumrah then got rid of a set Mohammad Nabi in the same over. Rashid Khan was Bumrah's final victim. The latter conceded just 39 runs in 10 overs.
Bumrah's best World Cup figures
Bumrah has registered his best bowling figures in the ODI World Cup (4/39). This was his second four-wicket haul in the tournament. The right-arm seamer now has 24 wickets from 11 World Cup matches at an incredible average of 18.54. His economy rate reads 4.27. Bumrah owns six wickets from two ODIs at 13.00 against the Afghans.
A crucial role from the lower middle order
Afghanistan were tottering on 235/7 after losing Omarzai, Shahidi, and Najibullah. Rashid (16), Mujeeb Ur Rahman (10*), and Naveen-ul-Haq (9*) compiled crucial runs for the Afghans in the death overs.
