(Image source: X.com)
[Saba Sports News] Afghanistan opener Ibrahim Zadran created history as his team faced Australia in the 39th match of the ODI World Cup 2023.
Opting to bat first, Afghanistan had a great first innings as they set a 292-run target for Australia. If the Aussies are to win the game, they would have to pull a record run-chase at the Wankhede Stadium in the ODI format.
The total was achieved with the help of Zadran, who batted through the innings, scoring a 143-ball 129.
After his knock, the second-best sore came from number seven Rashid Khan, who played a useful 35-run cameo to add the finishing touches.
Coming back to Zadran, he hammered his fifth ODI hundred, becoming the first Afghanistan batter to hit a century in a World Cup match. This marked his entry in record books.
Moreover, Afghanistan tonked nine sixes in their innings. This is the highest number of maximums they have hit in World Cup fixture so far.
Afghanistan are still in the race to qualify for the semis of the ongoing tournament. They need to win both their games against Australia and South Africa if they want to keep qualification chances in their own hands.
If they gather a single win, they would then have to hope that Pakistan and New Zealand lose their respective matches.