The afg vs pak 2023 CWC showdown concludes with a surprising twist, as Pakistan’s team suffers an 8-wicket defeat at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium.
The 1992 World Cup champions find themselves in a challenging position, with a tough road ahead to qualify for the knockout stage.
In the post-match ceremony, Babar Azam expressed his disappointment, attributing their loss to the bowlers’ inability to take wickets in the middle overs. He said,
“This is painful for us. We posted a competitive total, but our bowling performance fell short, particularly in the middle overs. If you’re not performing well in any aspect, you’re bound to lose the game.”
Babar continued to elaborate,
“We struggled to prevent boundaries and leaked runs, which ultimately cost us the match. While our initial bowling was good, we couldn’t make the breakthroughs in the crucial middle phase.”
The Pakistan captain acknowledged Afghanistan’s all-round performance, saying,
“Our arch-rivals won because of their excellent display in all three facets of the game. We need to regroup for the next match, learn from our mistakes in this game, and improve. Our lengths were inconsistent, especially during the middle overs, and we conceded boundaries regularly.”
On the other hand, the jubilant captain Hashmatullah Shahidi described the victory as satisfying. He said,
“This win is particularly sweet. Our professional approach to the chase was commendable. We look forward to upcoming matches and aim to replicate our successful chase today. We’ve been consistently playing high-quality cricket, and our confidence dates back to the Asia Cup.”
Hashmatullah shared his thoughts on their earlier win against England, stating,
“Our first win was against England, and now we’ve defeated Pakistan. We’re excited about our upcoming matches and remain committed to playing positive cricket for the betterment of our country.”
It’s worth noting that this Afghanistan team, led by Hashmatullah, achieved their first-ever victory over Pakistan, marking their second win of the tournament following their earlier triumph against England.
afg vs pak 2023 World Cup Squad
Pakistan Squad:
- Imam-ul-Haq
- Abdullah Shafique
- Babar Azam (C)
- Mohammad Rizwan (WK)
- Saud Shakeel
- Iftikhar Ahmed
- Shahdab khan
- Hasan Ali
- Usama Mir
- Shaheen Afridi
- Haris Rauf
Afghanistan Squad:
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK)
- Ibrahim Zadran
- Rahmat Shah
- Hashmatullah Shahidi (C)
- Mohammad Nabi
- Ikram Alikhil
- Azmatullah Omarzai
- Rashid Khan
- Mujeeb Ur Rahman
- Fazalhaq Farooqi
- Naveen-ul-Haq
