Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag took a dig at Pakistan team after a dominant Afghanistan side defeated them by eight wickets at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, India, on Monday and created history as this was their first win over the Green Shirts in One-Day cricket.
Hashmatullah Shahidi’s men showed great temperament throughout the game and displayed an all-round performance that saw them creating history and reviving their World Cup campaign.
Sehwag, who represented India in 374 matches, stated that a loss like today’s was coming because of the way Pakistan had been making excuses for their losses in the World Cup.
He also congratulated the Afghanistan team who, after coming close many times, finally managed to beat Pakistan.
“Pakistan is an unpredictable side but the way they have been making lame excuses for their earlier defeats, this was certainly on the cards. Just did not focus on their many weaknesses. What a proud day for Afghanisitan, came close many times but today crossed the line. #AFGvsPAK,” Sehwag wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
The eight-wicket loss has certainly weakened Pakistan’s chances to qualify for the semi-final as after five matches, the Green Shirts have only won two while losing three.
If Babar Azam’s men want to qualify for the Super Four, they would not just need to win their remaining matches, but also win them by big margins as their net run rate (NRR) has also been affected after a loss.
Pakistan’s next four World Cup matches are against South Africa (Chennai), Bangladesh (Kolkata), New Zealand (Bengaluru), and England (Kolkata).
Ibrahim Zadran (87), Rahmat Shah (77*) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (65) struck fifties to ensure the Afghans claim their first win over the Men in Green in ODIs. Hashmatullah Shahidi (48*) chipped in with some valuable runs as well.
Earlier, Pakistan put up a total of 283 to chase after opting to bat first. Skipper Babar Azam and opener Abdullah Shafique put up half-centuries before Afghanistan’s teenage leg spinner Noor Ahmad struck twice to put the brakes on the national squad’s progress.
Contributions of 40 runs each from Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan propelled Pakistan’s total above 280, rescuing the Green Team from a minor collapse during the middle of their innings when they found themselves four down at 163 runs.
By the end of the first innings, Pakistan scored 282 at the loss of seven wickets.
- Virender Sehwag
