Afghanistan ultimately defeated Pakistan in a nail-biting thriller on Monday, October 23, in Match 22 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, defeating them by eight wickets. Afghanistan has previously played in multiple nail-biting thrillers against Pakistan over the previous few years.
As the Afghans chased down 283 in 49 overs, Ibrahim Zadran shone with the bat, playing a superb innings of 87 (113).
Due to his match-winning effort, the 21-year-old received the Player of the Match award with due merit. The opening batter dedicated his prize to the Afghan refugees who were deported to Pakistan during the post-game interview.
During the post-match presentation, Gurbaz said, “I would like to dedicate this POTM award to the people who were sent back from Pakistan to Afghanistan.”
Notably, the Pakistani government launched an offensive against the thousands of Afghan refugees living there and ordered them to evacuate by November 1 or risk deportation. Tens of thousands of Afghan citizens departed Islamabad as a result.
The decision was made in spite of appeals from the United States to permit entrance for Afghan refugees seeking international protection in their neighboring countries in order to shield them from persecutory acts and other mistreatment by Taliban leaders.
Afghanistan earns their third victory in the history of the ODI World Cup.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan won their maiden ODI World Cup match against Pakistan and only their third victory overall. After deciding to bat first, Pakistan earlier that day amassed a respectable total of 282/7 in their allotted 50 overs thanks to captain Babar Azam’s innings of 74 (92).
Additionally, observe how Mohammad Nabi cautions Babar Azam for leaving his crease too soon during the PAK vs. AFG match.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (65 off 53) and Ibrahim Zadran (87 off 113), Afghanistan’s openers, scored 130 runs for the first wicket in just 127 balls as part of their response. After being dismissed, Hasmatullah Shahidi (48* off 45) and Rahmat Shah (77* off 84) led their team home in 49 overs, enabling them to defeat Pakistan for the first time in history.
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