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India beat Afghanistan by eight wickets in yesterday’s 2023 World Cup match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
Batting first after winning the toss, Afghanistan managed a below par 272/8 despite skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi’s 80 as Jasprit Bumrah shone with 4/39. Rohit Sharma (131 off 84) then broke multiple records during his terrific knock as India aced the chase in 35 overs.
With two wins from two games, hosts India are second on the 2023 World Cup points table. New Zealand are above India owing to a superior net run rate, while Pakistan are in third position, having also won their first two matches.
Chasing 273, the Men in Blue got off to a sensational start, adding 156 for the opening wicket in 18.4 overs. Skipper Rohit was the dominant partner in the first wicket stand with Ishan Kishan (47 off 47).
Even as Kishan struggled for fluency at one end, Rohit raced to 50 in 30 balls. With a maximum off the next ball (his 554th in international cricket), he smashed off Naveen-ul-Haq’s bowling and broke Chris Gayle’s record (553) for most sixes in international cricket.
The runs kept flowing with ease and Rohit brought up his 100 off only 63 balls, this time breaking the record for the fastest ODI World Cup hundred by an Indian. Kapil Dev held the previous record (72 balls).
With his seventh World Cup century, Rohit also moved to the top of the list among batters with the most hundreds in the ICC event. Heading into the match, Rohit was tied on six with Sachin Tendulkar.
The opening partnership was broken when Ishan chipped a googly from Rashid Khan to cover. With the result more or less a foregone conclusion, Rohit toyed with the bowling.
The first three balls of the 23rd over from Rashid were slammed for 4,4,6. The party finally ended for Rohit when was bowled attempting a slog sweep off the leggie. He walked back, having struck 16 fours and five sixes.
Virat Kohli (55* off 56) and Shreyas Iyer (25* off 23) completed the formalities for India. A warm handshake between Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq to bury the hatchet was a nice side story that grabbed plenty of attention.
Bumrah restricts Afghanistan with four-fer
Batting first, Afghanistan’s openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz (21) and Ibrahim Zadran (22) both got starts. However, neither of them could carry on and Afghanistan soon found themselves in trouble at 63/3.
Skipper Shahidi (80 off 88) and Azmatullah Omarzai (62 off 69), however, added 121 runs for the fourth wicket to lift the batting side.
After the partnership was broken, Bumrah ran through the Afghanistan lower order, dismissing Najibullah Zadran (2), Mohammad Nabi (19) and Rashid (16). Afghanistan were reasonably placed at 183/3 at one point in time, but Bumrah’s strikes hurt their progress.
Who was the Player of the Match in India vs Afghanistan 2023 World Cup match?
Bumrah was excellent with the ball, claiming a four-wicket haul. In India’s chase, Rohit Sharma was exceptional. His hundred killed any hopes of an Afghanistan fightback. For Afghanistan, skipper Shahidi and Omarzai scored valiant fifties.
Indian captain Rohit was the easy choice for Player of the Match for his splendid knock.
