England beat Afghanistan by 15 runs and kept alive their hopes of qualification for the next round. After winning the toss and electing to bat, England's batsmen got off to the worst possible start as they lost four wickets inside the powerplay and before long were reduced to 85/7.
But, a partnership between Moeen Ali and David Willey helped them post a respectable total on a pitch that was gripping and offering slow turn. In response, Afghanistan, who were heavily reliant on Mohammad Shahzad to get them off to a good start, lost their way once the wicketkeeper fell and it was only a matter of time before they lost.
There were several unforgettable moments throughout the match that don’t fade away, quite like the Axe Signature line of body perfumes. Here are 5 moments which will remain in the fans' memories for a long time:
1. Root’s run out
Two wickets had already fallen off the over, off successive deliveries as well, but Mohammad Nabi wasn't done there. Arguably the most crucial wicket was the last to arrive as Joe Root was runout after setting off for a nonexistent single. Ben Stokes clipped it into the leg side but Root set off for a single and the throw was to the bowler's end and he was short.
While that is the long and short of what happened, it wasn't all so simple. In fact, it was complete chaos as Nabi broke the stumps first without the ball but then had the presence of mind to uproot the stump with the ball still in his hand. Root was so far down the track that he had time for that and eventually his smart thinking paid off as England's top runscorer in the tournament was dismissed.
2. Nabi’s brilliant catch
The tournament has already seen plenty of impressive catches and another one was added to the list after this game. Mohammad Nabi is not only Afghanistan's alltime leading T20I wickettaker and a handy batsman but also a fantastic fielder as he demonstrated against England.
With the side already struggling at 50/4, Samiullah Shenwari came in to bowl and was driven powerfully to short extra cover where Nabi was positioned. Although the shot was hit like a bullet, Nabi just dived forward and to his left and scooped the ball into his hands like a heron catching a fish. The fact that it was inches from the ground and he was almost diving full length to dismiss England's most destructive batsman (Jos Buttler) made it even better.
3. Willey’s back to back sixes
When Willey came out to bat, England were struggling and were seven down. Willey had only scored 7 from 13 balls before he took the strike in the penultimate over against Hamza Hotak. Although Moeen Ali had already hit him for 13 runs in the first four balls, England were still someway short of a good total but Willey took it upon himself to change that.
Willey went from 7 to 13 with a six straight down the ground. That wasn't especially long but it was struck so sweetly that it went soaring over long on. The second was arguably even better. It was in the slot but the way in which the southpaw creamed it over midwicket was simply sublime. In the end, it was those two sixes and that over which helped England get past 140, which they managed to defend successfully.
4. Willey gets the prized scalp
One of the reasons why Afghanistan have been so successful was the form of Mohammad Shahzad. Although the target was nowhere near as massive as the one against the Proteas, they still knew that a good start from him and they would be well on their way to a victory. And Shahzad had already scored a boundary off the first ball of the over, although it was an edge and not a great shot.
David Willey has, in his short career, shown that he has what it takes to swing the ball, almost irrespective of the pitch that he is playing on. And it was his swing that got rid of the dangerous Shahzad. The full ball pitched on middle stump and swung in and Shahzad had no answer and was trapped lbw. He was gone for four and inside the first over, Afghanistan's biggest hope of victory was taken care of.
5. Najibullah’s unlucky dismissal
Needing 60 off the last five overs with only four wickets in hand, Afghanistan needed everything to go their way if they were to sneak a miraculous victory. Unfortunately for them, that isn't what panned out as they lost their last recognised batsman in unfortunate circumstances.
Chris Jordan delivered a brilliant yorker that Samiullah Shenwari dug out well. But, Najibullah set off for a single but Jordan quickly got to the ball and threw down the stumps. On first glance, it looked as though the batsman was safely home. But, on closer inspection, there was a glimmer of daylight between bat and grass as the bat bounced up in the air and cost him his wicket. And that all but sealed the victory despite Shafaq's late pyrotechniques.
