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Excellent News from the Cricket World Cup 2023! People, hold on to your hats! Afghanistan has accomplished a remarkable victory in Pune, India, defeating Sri Lanka by an impressive seven wickets! Is it really true? With their current winning streak, this underdog squad has a genuine possibility of reaching their first-ever semifinal. They’ve been moving up the rankings, from seventh to an astounding fifth!
Recall that Afghanistan only managed to win one World Cup in the previous two tournaments, in 2015 and 2019. But boy, have they flipped it around this time. They defeated the defending champion England in New Delhi, defeated Pakistan in Chennai in 1992, and now in Pune, they have added Sri Lanka as a new victory to their record! It resembles a real-life fable about crickets.
And the day’s heroes? Not anyone else but the amazing Afghan team! After being excluded from the victory over Pakistan, fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi stormed back to take four vital wickets, making life difficult for Sri Lanka and restricting them to a just 241. Wow, what a return!
But when Afghanistan was at the crease, that’s when the true magic happened. Thanks to an undefeated partnership of 111 runs in just 104 balls between all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai (73 not out) and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi (58 not out), they quickly chased down that total. With his 62 runs, Rahmat Shah also contributed significantly, enabling Afghanistan to win the match 242-3 in just 45.2 overs. Excitement must have been in the air as the crowd stood up!
There were moments of brilliance for Sri Lanka, such as the 62-run partnership between captain Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka, and the 50-run partnership between Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama. However, Afghanistan’s bowlers continued to hold a vice-like grip over the action.
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And Afghanistan did not let us down when it came their turn to bat. They remained composed and, led by Shah and Ibrahim Zadran, created an incredible atmosphere for the chase with their 73-run combination. Shahidi and Omarzai took over and made sure victory was within their reach, despite a few bumps in the road. Omarzai’s impressive innings, which included three sixes and six fours, was the icing on the Afghan cake.
Afghanistan have again demonstrated why they are a formidable team in the cricket world during this emotionally charged contest. Is it possible for them to advance to the semifinals? We’ll have to wait and see, but one thing is certain—they’ve created a buzz of excitement throughout the cricket community!
World Cup 2023 Information Source: https://apnews.com/article/cricket-world-cup-afghanistan-sri-lanka-5cec9d49caeefe88b44743ce2e6b5f6e
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