Down and out, the two bottom-placed teams know that this will be their best chance to post their first win in the ongoing 50-over showpiece.
Advancing into the Super 10 stage for the first time in three attempts, minnows Afghanistan will face a formidable challenge when they clash with South Africa in the ICC World Twenty 20 Championship at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.
AB de Villiers blasted a quickfire half-century to propel South Africa to a mammoth total against Afghanistan in the ICC World T20 Super 10 Group 2 match at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai, on Sunday. Images from the match.
Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi are a spin-bowling unit the equal of any in the world
With Jadeja almost clinching victory with a boundary and Khaleel Ahmed scampering home for his life to tie the scores, only a single was all that was required off two deliveries.
The fond memories of 2015 came rolling back for Mitchell Starc after beginning his World Cup campaign in near-identical fashion to his crowning moment.
None other than India skipper Virat Kohli acknowledged Afghanistan's rapid rise in the last four years.
Afghanistan scored 145 for six after electing to bat, a target which they defended riding on Rashid's brilliance.
Rashid came to bowl in the 11th over and put his team in a strong position straightaway by removing the experienced Mushfiqur Rahim (20) and Sabbir Rahman (0) off his first two deliveries. Bangladesh could not recover from the blow and ended at 122 all out in response to Afghanistan's 167 for eight.
Afghan wicketkeeper-batsman says who needs a punishing regimen like the Indian captain when he can hit longer sixes than the world's No.1 ODI batsman.
Afghanistan beat Kenya by seven wickets, at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, to earn automatic qualification to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
The video showed the sloganeers flashing the victory sign near Alam's residence.
Former Afghanistan skipper Nawroz Mangal, under whose leadership his side secured an ODI status in the 2009 World Cup Qualifiers and then qualified for the 2010 World T20 event, has announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect in order to take up a role of the national chief selector. While confirming the news of Mangal's appointment in the selection panel, Shafiqullah Stanikzai, the Afghanistan Cricket Board's chief executive officer, said it is an honour for Afghanistan cricket that a player like the 32-year-old, who has a big fan following and respect among others, is the chief selector.
Defending champions Sri Lanka secured a six wicket win over Afghanistan in their ICC World T20 Super 10 opener at the Eden Gardens on Thursday.
Shikhar Dhawan, who was highest run-getter with 342 runs, gained four slots to reach fifth position.
'Overall as a team, they cannot be seen as walkover. They're very competitive as a one-day and T20 side. They keep proving it over and over again'
Rajneesh Gupta picks the overseas stars at Monday's IPL Players auction.
Rajneesh Gupta presents the numbers from the T20 series against England.
Rajneesh Gupta presents us all the numbers that matter in T20 World Cup 2021.
The only problem for India in the Asia Cup so far has been lack of batting time for the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav and Dinesh Karthik.
Athletics continued to be India's achilles' heel in its anti-doping campaign, accounting for 21 of the 71 positive tests recorded by the National Anti-Doping Agency in the last one year, according to the latest WADA report.
Afghanistan roared into the main draw of the World Twenty20 with an emphatic 59-run victory over Zimbabwe in a first round Group B match on Saturday. Mohammad Shahzad (40) gave Afghanistan a flying start before Mohammad Nabi (52) and Samiullah Shenwari (43) added 98 runs off 64 balls to power them to 186-6, their highest total in this format. The associate nation then returned to bowl out Zimbabwe for 127 to register a memorable victory over a full-member nation and join England, South Africa, West Indies and Sri Lanka in Group One of the Super 10 stage of the tournament. "This was a very important match for us. People in Afghanistan are crazy about cricket. They love the game, so (winning it) was very important for us," victorious captain Asghar Stanikzai said. With a place in the main draw at stake, Stanikzai opted to bat and was vindicated as Shahzad set alight Nagpur's VCA Stadium with his swashbuckling batting. The portly 28-year-old hit Tendai Chatara for four successive boundaries after a quiet opening over, forcing the pacer off attack. Donald Tiripano was pressed into service but there was no respite from Shahzad who hit him for three successive fours. Shahzad greeted left-arm spinner Sean Williams by hitting his first delivery for a six but fell in the same over after a 23-ball blitz attempting a reverse sweep.
Chasing a competitive 258 for victory, Pakistan overhauled the target with just three balls to spare with former captain Shoaib Malik (51 off 43 balls) getting the winning runs.
This was Sri Lanka's second loss in as many matches, and, as a consequence, they have been knocked out of the tournament.
Mahmudullah and Kayes lift Bangladesh to 249/7 after poor start
.jpg)
Five-time champions India ended their campaign in the Asia Cup with a consolation eight-wicket victory over debutants Afghanistan, in Mirpur, on Wednesday.
Spinner Rashid Khan celebrated his 20th birthday in style by producing a stunning all-round display as Afghanistan beat Bangladesh by 136 runs in an Asia Cup match in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
India suffered a shock 28-run defeat against Afghanistan but still qualified for the semi-finals of the Asian Cricket Council Emerging Teams Cup tournament for the under-23 cricket teams, in Singapore, on Thursday.
Rajneesh Gupta profiles the cricketers playing the World Cup 2019.
Six months after Afghanistan qualified for its maiden appearance in the Cricket World Cup, its success story continues to make waves and the strife-torn country has now entered into the main ODI rankings table for the first time.
The International Cricket Council released the provisional squads of the 12 teams for next year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand on Friday. However, co-hosts Australia and minnows Ireland decided against releasing the provisional list although they submitted 30 names to the parent body within the stipulated deadline.
Powered by his marauding knocks in the World Twenty20 so far, Indian batsman Virat Kohli on Tuesday became the top-ranked batsman in the ICC rankings, while India remained static at the No.1 spot in the team list. Kohli, who averages 92 after scoring 184 runs in four matches at a strike-rate of over 132, had entered the tournament 24 points behind Aaron Finch, but has now opened up a 68-point advantage over the Australian, the ICC said in a statement. In the bowlers' table, West Indies' Samuel Badree has displaced Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin to return to the number-one position. Badree has taken six wickets in four matches to date, while Ashwin has dropped to third after managing just four wickets in as many matches.
Talented wicketkeeper-batsman Umar Akmal notched up a breezy century under pressure before the bowlers came to the party and guided Pakistan to a bonus-point 72-run victory over Afghanistan in the Asia Cup.
The South African opener took only 108 innings to reach the milestone, beating the previous record held by India's Virat Kohli, who took 133 innings for the same.
Bangladesh spinners, led by Shakib Al Hasan, guided their side to a thumping nine-wicket win against Afghanistan in their Qualifying Group A match of the ICC World T20 at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Sunday. Later, Debutants Nepal produced a dominating all-round performance to crush Hong Kong by 80 runs in another qualifying Group A match.
Bangladesh all-rounder Mahmdullah finished as the MVP in the recently-concluded Asia Cup T20 tournament ahead of compatriot Sabbir Rahman, who was named as the man of the series. Purnendu Maji and Srinivas Bhogle present the latest edition of the MVP rankings.
This was the 36th tie in one-day international history and the 8th involving India.
Afghanistan notched up their first major win against a Test playing nation as they produced an all-round performance to script an upset 32-run victory over Bangladesh in their Asia Cup match in Fatullah on Saturday.
Penpix of the Afghanistan squad for the 2015 cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances