Afghanistan's top-order batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz put on a stellar show against England during the World Cup 2023 clash in Delhi on Sunday, October 15, swiftly reaching his fifty in just 33 balls. This feat made it the fourth-fastest fifty in this edition of the World Cup. Unfortunately, a maiden World Cup century eluded him as he was run out for 80 due to a mix-up with captain Hashmatullah Shahidi.
The incident took place in the 29th over, when a Full delivery just outside off. Shahidi pushed the ball into the danger zone and took a single where there was none. The fielder David Willey swooped in from mid-wicket and threw it at the batter's end. Gurbaz, despite the dive, fell a couple of yards short. This meant that Afghanistan shot themselves in the foot, bringing England back into the match.
Gurbaz was visibly unhappy with the moment and was shouting on his way back to the pavilion. He also smashed the boundary and a chair off the field, which means that the wicketkeeper-batter might be fined a percentage of his match fees for this.
Despite Gurbaz's dismissal, his commendable innings and a solid 114-run opening stand with Ibrahim Zadran provided Afghanistan with a robust foundation against the reigning World Cup champions, England.
After winning the toss, England captain Jos Buttler chose fielding. Commenting on the decision, Buttler said, “No particular reason (to bowl first), looks like a good wicket and we’ll like to chase. Looks like a good batting strip, South Africa and India posted big scores. I think we’ve improved a lot from the first to the second game, we just have to show the same intensity.”
On the other side, Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi altered their playing XI. The team seeks their maiden victory in the tournament following defeats against Bangladesh and India. Shahidi stated, “We wanted to bowl first, but this is a 100-over game, we’ll have to bat well.” He further commented on the wicket, saying, “Looks like a batting pitch, expecting the same conditions like the last game. Hopeful of doing well and putting pressure on them. We’ve good spin options and anything around 300 should be a good score.”
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