Afghanistan faces Pakistan’s 283-run World Cup target
On the first day of the World Cup 2023 match between Pakistan and Afghanistan at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, India, Pakistan was knocked out for just 282.
In the 22nd match of the tournament, Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam won the toss and decided to bat first. Pakistan is fifth in the points table after four games. They have won two and lost three.
Pakistan had a few tough games after starting the tournament with big wins over the Netherlands and Sri Lanka. Those wins set a record for the most successful chase in the history of the event.
When Pakistan won the toss today, the captain said that they had made one change: Shadab Khan had been added to the starting XI in place of Mohammad Nawaz, who has a fever. As per ESPNCricinfo, the game is being played on pitch No. 5, which was also used for the game between India and Australia.
“It’s a black-soil surface – and not the mix of red and black – so Afghanistan have understandably packed their side with four spinners in Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mohammad Nabi and Noor Ahmad.”
Playing XI
Pakistan:Â Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf
Afghanistan:Â Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad.
