Afghanistan defeats New Zealand, runners-up in 2021, by 84 runs: In a Group C match of the T20 World Cup in Guyana on Saturday, Afghanistan shocked New Zealand, the runners-up in 2021, by 84 runs.
After winning the toss, Kane Williamson, the captain of New Zealand, asked Afghanistan to bat.
After winning the IPL with the Kolkata Knight Riders, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, a wicketkeeper-batter, provided Afghanistan a brilliant start with an 80 off 56 balls. The Afghans, however, used extreme caution. They had only managed 55 runs by the midway point. To get things going, Gurbaz and Zadran blasted five sixes in the first three overs.
Together with Ibrahim Zadran (41-ball 44; 2×6, 3×4), Gurbaz struck five sixes and as many fours as he put up 103 for the first wicket in 14.3 overs. Azmatullah Omarzai scored 22 runs off of 13 balls in a brilliant cameo. Trent Boult (2/22), Matt Henry (2/37) and Lockie Ferguson (1/28) split the points for New Zealand. They were limited to 159 for six by Trent Boult (2/22) and Matt Henry (2/37) though, thus they were unable to complete well.
Following up his five-wicket performance against Uganda, Fazalhaq Farooqi (4/17), chasing a challenging target, caused chaos with the new ball. In addition to taking four wickets, captain Rashid Khan received strong assistance from Mohammad Nabi, who returned with a record of 2 for 22 in his allotted four overs.
In just 15.2 overs, New Zealand was bowled out for 75, with just two batsman, Glen Phillips (18) and Matt Henry (12), scoring in double figures.
“One of our best Twenty20 performances to date, particularly in a major match against New Zealand.” At the post-match presentation, Rashid Khan stated, “The wicket wasn’t easy to score; Gurbaz and Ibrahim batted really well; it was a superb performance with the bat, ball, and field.”
New Zealand, who appeared unprepared for the whole game, has a lot to consider.
“We were beaten by Afghanistan in every way; they deserve our congratulations.” They produced a strong score and held their wickets to reach that mark on that surface. We’ll need to move past this as soon as possible and focus on our upcoming task, Kane Williamson stated.
