Afghanistan look to bounce back against South Africa
With only two teams slated to make the Super Eight stage from each group, Afghanistan find themselves in a must-win situation when they take on an in-form South Africa in their Group D match of the T20 World Cup on Wednesday. South Africa are perched at the top, head and shoulders above the rest as their 57-run victory over minnows Canada bolstered their Net Run Rate to 2.850 along with two points.
On the other hand, a five-wicket defeat to New Zealand (+1.162) saw Afghanistan slip to third with a Net Run Rate of -1.162, which they would have to improve in order to advance to the next round. Therefore, the competition in Group D can be expected to be intense in the coming days as Afghanistan are among the teams to beat in the tournament. South Africa, the last edition’s runner-up, and the resolute Kiwis will heat up the battle as Group D is set to witness some tension in the first round.
Afghanistan rode on Gulbadin Naib’s 35-ball 63 and handy contributions from the other batters to put on a formidable score of 182 for six while batting first against New Zealand. But the Afghans were left to rue their decision of leaving out Noor Ahmad, despite his experience of playing T20 cricket at Chepauk, in favour of fast bowlers who failed to execute their plans and bowled wayward. Afghanistan fast bowlers collectively failed to put pressure on the Kiwis and even their skipper Rashid had an off day, giving away 1/36 in his four overs.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s 2/31 was the only bright spot for the Afghans with the ball, who will be determined to make significant improvements as they move to the world’s biggest stadium. Rashid’s experience of playing here in the IPL will be crucial for Afghanistan, who need a win to bounce back and resurrect their campaign. Additionally, their bilateral record against South Africa will also weigh heavily on the Afghans who have lost each of their three matches in history.
