India and Afghanistan both played their respective national anthems before players took the field for the toss, which India won and elected to bat first.
Kuldeep Yadav bowls a googly to Nabi, who hits it for six!
Team Match Scorecard
Dive into the India National Cricket Team Vs Afghanistan National Cricket Team Match Scorecard as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will open India’s innings, while Kuldeep Yadav has the new ball.
Najibullah Zadran strikes a stunning four off a slower length delivery over deep square leg with his bat, taking timed steps down and across one knee before sending the ball over the ropes for an impressive boundary hit.
Fazalhaq Farooqi bowls to Rohit, with no runs recorded from it. Rohit attempted a slog against this delivery but his attempt missed and Rashid Khan held onto it at mid-on for easy wicket keeping.
India openers began strongly, thanks to a quickfire 32 off 24 balls by Najibullah Zadran in the first powerplay over. Unfortunately, after that their innings faltered considerably; Mujeeb Ur Rahman proved particularly effective as Afghanistan took two wickets off Mujeeb Ur Rahman; Azmatullah Omarzai also secured one wicket for Afghanistan.
India national cricket team Performance
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have both performed admirably for their teams. Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav have also provided outstanding bowling performances.
Gulbadin Naib and Rahmanullah Gurbaz have also taken wickets for Afghanistan.
Kensington Oval provides excellent bounce and carry for batsmen while aiding pace bowlers with speed bowling. This will be sure to provide both teams with an exciting contest.
India and Afghanistan begin their game by saluting each nation’s national anthems. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli open for India; Rohit smashes a boundary off his first ball but loses his wicket to Azmatullah Omarzai shortly thereafter when going after a full and wide delivery that hits him square on the pads, leading Rashid Khan at mid-on to catch it easily.
Afghanistan National Cricket Team Performance
Afghanistan cricket team has taken the world by surprise with its remarkable rise to international prominence over the past 15 years, from Division 5 matches against Vanuatu and Mozambique in Division 5, all the way through beating heavyweights such as Australia and New Zealand. For a country plagued by poverty and insecurity, this represents hope of a more prosperous future – its players benefit from lucrative career opportunities such as playing at World Cup matches that earn up to $3600 per match played as well as receiving monthly salaries ranging from $1,200-$3,300 respectively!
Afghans across the nation were out in force on Friday to cheer their team’s first-ever semi-final appearance at the World Cup in St Lucia, many watching big screens in parks and wedding venues. The Taliban government sent its congratulations via video call, while top cricketers such as Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag also sent their best wishes for success to Afghanistan’s squad.
Predictions for the Upcoming Match
India defeated Afghanistan by six wickets with Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja each taking one wicket each as Jasprit Bumrah secured three crucial wickets.
Sanju Samson should find himself included in the team after scoring an impressive one-day international century against South Africa and has an excellent chance at making it.
Najibullah Zadran unleashes an amazing SIX in Kuldeep Yadav’s fourth over. He hit an underarm delivery over deep square leg for six.
Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh have set India off the mark. Rinku has already hit two boundaries and shown some exquisite drives off side before hitting his second delivery through the covers to score eight runs in one over.
Highlights
National Anthems have been played and India begin the innings with some singles. Bumrah takes Hazratullah Zazai wicket, when he delivers a length ball aimed at leg stump and strikes it hard enough that Zazai tried to move towards on side but got hit with thick leading edge which then balloons over backward point for Jadeja to take an easy catch.
India are in control as both Rohit and Virat score half-centuries; Suryakumar Yadav also made his contribution with 32 runs while Rishabh Pant and Shivam Dube also contributed with some runs each.
Farooqi to Rohit: LBW APPEAL! A slow start. Rohit attempts a slog sweep but fails, hitting him on the thigh pads instead. His review attempt fails and so it goes on as normal – leading to another single ball delivery and possible dismissal from Farooqi!
Final Thoughts
Afghanistan showed great resilience despite their dismal batting performance and were well supported by their bowlers. They will look to learn from this match and improve their batting against quality opposition in future matches.
Jasprit Bumrah shone with the ball, taking three wickets. Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh contributed two wickets each to Bumrah’s effort.
Hardik Pandya to Najibullah, SIX! A slower one pitched around off stump and Najibullah flicks it over deep square leg for an easy boundary.
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