Afghanistan's Noor Ahmad takes three-fer on World Cup debut
What's the story
Afghanistan's teen sensation Noor Ahmad took a crucial three-wicket haul on his ICC Cricket World Cup debut. The left-arm wrist-spinner shone against Pakistan in match number 22 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Ahmad was the pick of Afghanistan's bowlers as they restricted Pakistan to 282/7 in 50 overs. The Afghan spinner also recorded his best figures in ODI cricket.
Spell
Ahmad takes three wickets
Ahmad, who played his fourth ODI, was the pick of Afghanistan's bowlers in the match. He took three wickets for 49 runs in 10 overs. Ahmad dismissed the dangerous Abdullah Shafique, which reduced Pakistan to 110/2. In his next over, the Afghan spinner stopped Mohammad Rizwan (8) from going big. Ahmad also ended Babar Azam's bid to complete his century.
Information
Best figures for Afghanistan on WC debut
As per Opta, Ahmed recorded the best figures by an Afghan bowler on World Cup debut. Notably, only Mohammad Nabi (4/30) and S Zadran (4/38) have taken more wickets in a match for Afghanistan in the tournament.
Profile
Who is Noor Ahmed?
In 2019, Noor broke into the Afghanistan Under-19 side and represented the team on youth ODI tours to Sri Lanka and India. Eventually, he was named in Afghanistan's 15-man squad for the 2020 ICC Under-19 World Cup. At the grand stage, Noor scalped seven wickets from five games at an economy of 3.93. This included the best figures of 3/30 against UAE (group-stage encounter).