PUNE: A combined bowling and batting effort propelled Afghanistan to stun Sri Lanka by seven wickets in the 30th match of the ICC World Cup 2023 at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
Set to chase a modest 242, Afghanistan comfortably knocked the winning runs for the loss of just three wickets with 28 balls to spare.
Afghanistan’s pursuit, however, got off to a shaky start as Dilshan Madushanka castled in-form opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz for a four-ball duck in the first over.
Following the blow, opening batter Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah anchored the run chase with a 73-run partnership.
The duo appeared to have settled down before Madushanka struck again to get rid of Zadran, who scored 39 off 57 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and a six.
Shah was then joined by his captain Hashmatullah Shahidi and they kept Afghanistan in command by knitting a formidable 58-run partnership before the former perished.
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Rahmat Shah scored a 74-ball 62 that featured seven boundaries.
Shahidi then joined forces with Azmatullah Omarzai, who scored at a brisk rate to deny Sri Lanka any chance of a comeback.
Shahidi and Omarzai put together an unbeaten 91-run partnership with both scoring unbeaten half-centuries.
Omarzai top-scored for Afghanistan with a 63-ball 73, laced up with six boundaries and three sixes while Shahidi scored a cautious 58. His 74-ball knock included two boundaries and a six.
Madushanka led the bowling attack for Sri Lanka with two wickets while Kasun Rajitha could bag one.
A convincing seven-wicket victory lifted Afghanistan to fifth in the ICC World Cup 2023 standings while Sri Lanka slipped to sixth, followed by seventh-placed Pakistan.
Afghanistan drew first blood after opting to bowl with the wicket of Dimuth Karunaratne in the sixth over at a total of 22.
Sri Lankan skipper Kusal Mendis then joined hands with Pathum Nissanka (46) to raise 62 runs for the second wicket before Azmatullah Omarzai broke the stand with the wicket of Nissanka.
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Mendis added 50 more runs with Sadeera Samarawickrama for the third wicket to help raise the total to 134, however, Mujeeb Ur Rahman sent both of them packing in consecutive overs to halt Sri Lanka’s progress.
Sri Lanka slipped from 134-3 to 185-7, courtesy of Afghanistan’s brilliant bowling effort, which looked poised to book them under 200.
However, former captain Angelo Mathews and Maheesh Theekshana stuck around to add 45 runs off 42 balls for the eighth wicket to aid Sri Lanka’s total to 230.
Fazalhaq Farooqi then rained on their parade as he picked up both wickets in back-to-back wickets before Kasun Rajitha’s run-out in the final over ended Sri Lanka’s innings at 241.
Other than Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman achieved figures of 2-38, while Azmatullah Omarzai and Rashid Khan picked one wicket each.
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