Pak vs Afg: Afghanistan inflict historic 8-wicket defeat on hapless Pakistan

CHENNAI: In a historic first, Afghanistan Monday inflicted a historic defeat on Pakistan in Chennai, courtesy of a strong batting by their openers — Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran.

Afghanistan pulled off their second major shock of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 on Monday when they sent Pakistan crashing to an eight-wicket defeat, their first ever win against the Men in Green in an ODI match.

Chasing 283 to win, Afghanistan rode on the back of impressive innings from Ibrahim Zadran (87), Rahmat Shah (77 not out), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (65) and skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (48 not out) to reach their target with six balls to spare.

Afghanistan, who stunned defending champions England earlier in the tournament, and Pakistan both now have two wins and three losses from their five group games.

The two sides have faced each other eight times while playing ODI cricket, with the score now standing at 7-1.

Playing XI

Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf

Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad.

More to follow....