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regular-article-logo Thursday, 12 December 2024

New Zealand braces for Afghanistan's surging momentum in tense World Cup clash

Afghanistan, buoyed by their recent win against England, aims to take on New Zealand in a match that promises high stakes and electrifying cricket action

Our Web Desk Chennai Published 18.10.23, 12:19 PM
New Zealand's captain Tom Latham and Glenn Phillips during the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 match between New Zealand and Afghanistan

New Zealand's captain Tom Latham and Glenn Phillips during the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 match between New Zealand and Afghanistan PTI

  • Afghanistan is at 68/3 after 20 overs
  • Afghanistan is at 48/3 after 15 overs
  • Lockie Ferguson takes the wicket of Hashmatullah Shaidi
  • Afghanistan is at 28/2 after 10 overs
  • Trent Boult takes the wicket of Ibrahim Zadran
  • Matt Henry takes the wicket of Rahmanullah Gurbaz
  • Afghanistan is at 19/0 after five overs
  • Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran are the openers for Afghanistan
  • New Zealand score 257/6 in 50 overs against Afghanistan
  • New Zealand is at 257/6 after 48 overs
  • New Zealand is at 226/4 after 45 overs
  • New Zealand is at 185/4 after 40 overs
  • New Zealand is at 138/4 after 35 overs
  • Afghanistan is at 48/3 after 15 overs
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  • New Zealand is at 138/4 after 30 overs
  • New Zealand is at 120/4 after 25 overs
  • Rashid Khan takes the wicket of Daryl Mitchell
  • Azmatullah Omarzai takes the wicket of Will Young
  • Azmatullah Omarzai takes the wicket of Rachin Ravindra
  • New Zealand is at 109/1 after 20 overs
  • New Zealand is at 80/1 after 15 overs
  • New Zealand is at 43/1 after 10 overs
  • New Zealand is at 30/1 after seven overs
  • Mujeeb Ur Rahman takes the wicket of Devon Conway
  • New Zealand is at 23/0 after five overs
  • Teams: New Zealand: Tom Latham(wk/c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell,Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson and Trent Boult.
  • Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi(c),Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah,Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil(w), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq and Fazalhaq Farooqi.
  • Afghanistan are unchanged from their win against defending champions England.
  • Tom Latham is leading the Black Caps in Williamson's absence.
  • New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson misses out due to a fractured thumb he sustained in the match against Bangladesh, making way for Will Young.
  • Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and elected to field against New Zealand

Afghanistan's upset win over defending champions England has given the side a new stature and New Zealand would underestimate Hashmatullah Shahidi's side at their own peril when the two sides clash in their World Cup match here on Wednesday.

While the Kiwis would look to keep their unbeaten run going in the tournament, Afghanistan, who shocked England by 69 runs, would be keen to create another big upset and put their campaign firmly on track in the showpiece event.

New Zealand are going great guns in the tournament, having won all three matches so far and are currently placed second on the points table, trailing India on net run rate.

On the other hand, Afghanistan had an inauspicious start to their campaign losing to Bangladesh and India before leaving Jos Buttler's England in a tizzy with a victory to be cherished for long in New Delhi on Sunday.

New Zealand will again be led by wicketkeeper-batter Tom Latham after their charismatic skipper Kane Williamson suffered a fracture on his left thumb during the match against Bangladesh and was ruled out for a few games.

Williamson, who had missed the opening two matches -- against England and the Netherlands -- due to an ACL injury suffered during IPL 2023, was looking good to strike a century after being out of action for more than five months. But the skipper's innings was cut short at 78 when he was struck on the thumb by a throw from the outfield.

Despite the huge setback, the Kiwis would be banking on their success so far to win their fourth game on the trot against an unpredictable Afghanistan, who played their guts out against England.

It would be interesting to see if pacer Tim Southee finally gets a chance against Afghanistan, having recovered from a thumb injury, though his match fitness has remained an issue.

The Kiwis will rely heavily on their top order comprising Will Young, Devon Conway and Daryl Mitchell, while all-rounder Rachin Ravindra, with his impactful performances across departments, will also be the player to watch.

The Kiwi batters would certainly have watched the video footage of Afghanistan spinners Rashid Khan and Mohammed Nabi many times over to counter the slow-bowling threat, given that the duo accounted for five England wickets.

With the meeting happening at the Chepauk, where the pitch has traditionally assisted spinners, New Zealand will have their hands full when they take on the trio of Rashid, Mujeeb Ur Rehman and Nabi.

As for the Afghanistan batting, opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz is the man in form, having scored 50-plus in two matches so far, while the likes of skipper Shahidi, Azmatullah Omarzai and Ikram Alikhil could come in handy as well.

While Trent Boult and Matt Henry's searing pace will be feared by the Afghan batters, their main challenge could unexpectedly come from the spin duo of Ravindra and Mitchell Santner, with the latter being the most successful slow bowler in the competition so far.

The two teams have clashed in this format only twice with New Zealand winning on both occasions.

Squads: New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway (wk), Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (vc & wk), Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee and Will Young.

Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abdul Rahman and Naveen ul Haq.

Match starts at: 2 PM

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