INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Afghanistan on Sunday sealed its first-ever win against Australia in an exceptional all-round display in their Super 8 T20 World Cup
match.Collecting one of the team&s best ever cricketing victories, Afghanistan ended Australia&s unbeaten World Cup 2024.Australia&s skipper
Mitch Marsh won the toss and opted to field first but Afghanistan took little time to make Marsh question whether he&d made the right
decision.The Afghans had a plan and it was executed out of the gate, staying patient and precise.Needing a victory to avoid elimination,
Afghanistan posted 148-6 on the back of a superb opening stand of 118 between Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran.They quickly reduced
Australia to 32-3 in the chase but Glenn Maxwell&s 35-ball half-century recovered the situation for the 2021 champions.But just when
Australia seemed to have the advantage, Gulbadin Naib removed Marcus Stoinis and Tim David before claiming the prize scalp of Maxwell.From
there Australia collapsed from 106-6 to 113-9 and Afghanistan sealed the win & their first over Australia in any form of cricket & in the
final over.&We&ve been waiting for a long time, it&s a great moment for me, my nation, my people,& said player of the match Gulbadin.The
team is now firmly back in contention to reach the semi-finals
They will face Bangladesh in their last Super 8s game on Tuesday.Team captain Rashid Khan said: &It&s a massive win for us as a team and as
a nation.&&In a World Cup, to beat champions (Australia are 50-over world champions) is a great feeling and it is something we have
missed.&It&s just the beginning for us and we have every chance of making the semis,& Rashid said.Australia takes on India in St Lucia on
Monday and will likely need to win to progress to the last four. Related stories:India beat Afghanistan by 47 runs in Super 8 match of T20
World CupAfghanistan shock New Zealand by 84 runs for first win in historyThe post Afghanistan pulls off stunning upset against Australia in
T20 World Cup match first appeared on Ariana News.
