LUCKNOW: Another clinical bowling and batting performance helped Afghanistan score a third successive victory in the ICC Men's ODI World Cup, the surprise package of the 2023 edition thrashing the Netherlands by seven wickets to maintain their chances of reaching the semifinals.
After bundling out the Netherlands, who elected to bat first, for a paltry 179 in 46.3 overs, Afghanistan chased the target easily, reaching 181/3 with 111 balls remaining.
With this third win on a trot, Afghanistan sit with eight points on the World Cup table and have boosted their chances of a knockout spot.
Rahmat Shah (52) and Hashmatullah Shahidi (56 not out) stood tall for Afghanistan with a stand of 74 runs for the third wicket. Despite, managing to eke out early wickets, the Netherlands weren't quite in the game due to their modest outing in the first innings.
Chasing 180, Afghanistan's reliable opening pair of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran got them off to a characteristic brisk start. Boundaries flowed with ease as the Asian side went at about five-and-a-half an over.
This went on till Gurbaz was taken down the leg side off Logan van Beek. While initially ruled as a wide, the decision was eventually overturned after Scott Edwards took a review.
Rahmat Shah and Ibrahim Zadran then joined forces to ensure that Afghanistan went ahead at a fair pace.
Even though Ibrahim fell to Roelof van der Merwe in the 11th over, Afghanistan were moving towards their target at a steady pace.
Having reached a solid 109 at the 20-over mark, Rahmat and Hashmatullah Shahidi picked up pace. Although Rahmat fell to Saqib Zulfiqar in the 23rd over, Afghanistan went at 6.5 an over between overs 21-25.
Afghanistan eventually cleared the line in the 32nd over.
Brief scores: Netherlands 179 all out in 46.3 overs (Sybrand Engelbrecht 58, Max O'Dowd 42; Mohammad Nabi 3-23, Noor Ahmad 2-31) lost to Afghanistan 181/3 in 31.2 overs (Rahmat Shah 52, Hashmatullah Shahidi 56 not out, Azmatullah Omarzai 31 not out; Logan van Beek 1-20) by seven wickets. IANS
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