Afg vs pak : Pakistan’s cricket team was visibly shaken by its eight-wicket loss to Afghanistan in the ICC World Cup on Monday. The defeat jeopardised Pakistan’s semi-final hopes as Afghanistan claimed their first one-day win over Pakistan in eight runs. Read the report written below to know all about afg vs pak clash in world Cup.
Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmanullah Gurbaz were the heroes of Afghanistan. Zadranand#039’s brilliant 113-ball 87 and Gurbazand#039’s brisk 53-ball 65 laid a strong foundation for a 130-ball partnership for the first time. gate Rahmat Shahand#039; an unbeaten 84-ball 77 and skipper Hashmatullah Shahidiand#039;s 48 failed to seal the deal against a weak Pakistan.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam did not mince words about the team and the emotions, saying andquot;We were hurt as a team.andquot; With three losses and two wins from five matches, Pakistan now faces a critical challenge in the next match against South Africa in the same Chennai. andquot;We have to feel disappointed and my message to my team for the rest of the matches is to learn from this loss,andquot; Azam emphasised. Pakistan managed to post a total of 282/7 with Azam scoring 74 from 95 balls and opener Abdullah Shafique adding 58 after winning the toss and electing to bat.
Azam said We achieved the target while batting but we were not equal in our bowling and fielding.
Pakistani bowlers conceded 17 boundaries in 16 first overs. Azam praised Afghanistan for their well-deserved win, stating and quot;We couldn’t pressure them, but I congratulate Afghanistan for this win.
Fielding four specialist spinners, Afghanistan achieved their win with excellent spin quality. Azam outlined the team and strategy saying that Afghanistan’s spinners are of good quality, the plan was to give them runs only after the 40th over and then bat in the last ten overs, but we dropped a few. 10-15 is short.andquot; 18-year-old Noor Ahmad took 3-49 on his World Cup debut, while the experienced Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman remained out. Despite Monday’s shock and loss, Azam remained optimistic about Pakistan #039’s prospects of reaching the semi-finals.
From now on we have to play our best cricket in all departments and we have to overcome our mistakes,andquot; he stated.
Azam also acknowledged the absence of fast bowler Naseem Shah, who was sidelined at the World Cup with a shoulder injury.
Of course we miss Nasem a lot, because he was part of our plan, but overall our bowling did not go well,andquot; Azam confessed. He further stated that we knew there was nothing wrong with these bases and we were unable to implement the plans. We were perfect in practice but I think our bowlers chased too much in the matches and leaked runs. We need to focus on the positives and adopt a different way of thinking.
The cricketing world is now eagerly awaiting Pakistan’s response to this setback and whether they can bounce back in time to secure a place in the semi-finals of the ICC World Cup.
