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Heavy rain forced an early end to the second ODI between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan on November 27 (Sunday) but a premature ending turned into a blessing in disguise for Afghanistan. Courtesy of a washout, the Asian country bagged five important points in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League standings, taking their total to 115 and climbing to the seventh spot on the table. As a result, Afghanistan booked their place in the 2023 ODI World Cup which is scheduled to be held in India in October-November. Only the top eight teams earn direct qualification for the tournament.
| Rank | Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | No result | Points | NRR | Penalty Overs |
| 1 | India (hosts) (Q) | 20 | 13 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 134 | +0.782 | 1 |
| 2 | England | 18 | 12 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 125 | +1.219 | |
| 3 | New Zealand | 17 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 125 | +0.731 | |
| 4 | Australia | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 120 | +0.785 | |
| 5 | Bangladesh | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 120 | +0.384 | |
| 6 | Pakistan | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 120 | +0.217 | |
| 7 | Afghanistan | 14 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 115 | +0.616 | |
| 8 | West Indies | 24 | 9 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 88 | -0.738 | 2 |
| 9 | Ireland | 21 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 68 | -0.382 | 2 |
| 10 | Sri Lanka | 20 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 67 | -0.100 | 3 |
| 11 | South Africa | 16 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 59 | -0.458 | 1 |
| 12 | Zimbabwe | 21 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 45 | -1.141 | |
| 13 | Netherlands | 19 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 25 | -1.163 |
Meanwhile, chasing a target of 229 runs to win at the Pallekele International Stadium, Sri Lanka had reached 10-0 in 2.4 overs when rain forced the players off. It didn't stop and just before 9 p.m. local time the ODI was called off. Afghanistan still leads the three-match series 1-0 after the no result. It won the opener on Friday by 60 runs, with both teams unchanged Sunday.
Afghanistan opted to bat first after winning the toss and half-centuries by Rahmanullah Gurbaz (68) and Rahmat Shah (58) helped the team post 228 all out in 48.2 overs. Mohammad Nabi chipped in with 41 off 34 balls with two fours and two sixes.
Sri Lanka's bowling was wayward to start with but recovered well to claim the last five wickets for 33 runs. Seamer Kasun Rajitha finished with a career-best 3-31 in his nine overs, which included two maidens. Maheesh Theekshana and Lahiru Kumara claimed two wickets each as Sri Lanka bowled out Afghanistan.
The game was being played on the same surface as Friday's match and there was quite a bit of purchase for the spinners, meaning that Sri Lanka would likely have faced a tough challenge in its chase.
The third ODI is on November 30 (Wednesday) in Pallekele.
(With agency inputs)
