India vs Afghanistan WC 2019: Mohammed Shami bowls first hat-trick
World Cup 2019, India vs Afghanistan: Mohammed Shami’s sensational hat-trick seals it for Team India as they defeat Afghanistan by 11 runs.
INDIA VS AFGHANISTAN SCORECARD:
India: 224-8 in 50 overs | Winner
Virat Kohli: 67(63) | Kedar Jadhav: 52(68) | Mohammad Nabi: 2-33
Afghanistan: 213-10 in 49.5 overs | Lost by 11 runs
Mohammad Nabi: 52(55) | Mohammed Shami: 4-40 | Yuzvendra Chahal: 2-36
Player of the Match: Jasprit Bumrah
MATCH SUMMARY:
World Cup 2019: India vs Afghanistan: Mohammad Nabi’s brilliant all-round display goes in vain as Afghanistan go down in a well-fought battle against Team India.
In what could have been the second major upset in the last two days, Afghanistan fail to cross the pace battery of Burmah and Shami as India defeat Afghanistan by 11 runs.
Virat Kohli sensed the wicket to be a flat one, hence opted to bat first. However, the pitch turned out to be completely sluggish, favoring the spinners.
Courtesy to the pitch, Team India didn’t have a good start as both the openers failed to put up a good score.
Kohli, however, batted as if he was playing on a completely different pitch. While others struggled to reach a strike rate of 75, Kohli played a superb knock of 67(63) with a Strike rate of more than 100.
Meanwhile, Spinners played a huge role in Afghanistan’s strong bowling performance as they restricted India to a decent score of 224-8 in 50 overs.
THE CHASE:
Chasing 225, Afghanistan were going decently as they kept the NRR intact. However, the only issue with their approach was the inability to build big partnerships.
Team India didn’t let the game slip away from their hands as they kept taking wickets at regular intervals.
Mohammad Nabi did give India a run for their money as his determined knock took Afghanistan closer to the victory.
With 24 needed from last 3 overs, and Mohammed Nabi still at the crease, It felt as if he would pull off a magical win for Afghanistan. However, a ‘Yorkerish’ spell from Bumrah and Shami proved lethal as it left Afghanistan with 16 needed from the last over.
With 16 to win from 6 balls, Mohammad Nabi hit the first ball for a four as Indian fans skipped a heart beat.
Shami, however, didn’t let the pressure creep in as he brought all his experience into the picture to take World Cup 2019’s first hat-trick; thus helping Team India register a fabulous victory over Afghanistan.
Mohammad Nabi played a determined knock of 52(55), but that went in vain as India defeated Afghanistan by 11 runs in a close-fought encounter.
While Afghanistan were brilliant during bowling, there were many gaps which they could have addressed during their batting.
WHAT WENT WRONG FOR AFGHANISTAN?
- Lack of big partnerships in the middle hurt Afghanistan.
- A rather conservative approach by the Afghani batsmen during the chase.
- Inability to play bouncers as Afghanistan lost many wickets to fiery bouncers bowled by the Indian bowlers.
KEY MOMENTS:
- Virat Kohli’s wicket against the run of play in the 31st over.
- MS Dhoni getting stumped at the wrong time in the 45th over.
- Jasprit Bumrah’s toe-crushing yorkers in the 49th over.
- Mohammed Shami’s sensational hat-trick in the last over of the chase.
NEXT MATCH:
Match 30: PAKISTAN VS SOUTH AFRICA
Place: London
Date: June 23, 2019
Time: 3 pm IST
A battle of survival as two wounded teams meet in a must-win encounter.
ALSO READ: World Cup 2019, Afghanistan vs India Twitter Reactions.
Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics.
Cricket to him is like what ‘Football is to Lionel Messi’, ‘Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar’, ‘Dancing is to Michael Jackson’, and what ‘Acting is to Clint Eastwood’.
Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.
