New Zealand vs Afghanistan CWC 2023
New Zealand and Afghanistan will face off against each other today at 2 p.m. IST. This is the 16th match of this tournament so far, and boy, oh boy, has it been entertaining. You cannot predict anything, can you? You can read the match preview, predictions, etc, here. The highlights will come at the end, and you can follow the match ball by ball under this paragraph. There’s a video. Just wait for a couple of seconds for it to load.
Read: ICC Cricket World Cup points table 2023
New Zealand have been right on the money so far. They are heading towards another World Cup final if they keep at it. Wouldn’t that be interesting? Three times in a row! Maybe this is the lucky time for the Black Caps.
Check: Cricket World Cup 2023 New Zealand Squad [ANNOUNCED]
AFGHANISTAN! They were a bit low in the first two games. But their third game against England was such a shocker. This was the third time ever they were playing against the English team. And it was the first time they won an ODI against them. What a performance. They have shown that the Kiwis must be wary of them in this match.
Related: Afghanistan squad for ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023
Match details
Pitch report
Chennai is a spin-friendly track, and it will be a disaster for the Kiwis if Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi replay whatever they did against the English team. Devon Conway has shown promise against spin, which means he is crucial in this match.
This doesn’t mean Afghanistan gets a free pass. Mitchell Santner is one of the best bowlers in the tournament so far. And if he gets help from the Chennai surface, Afghanistan batters will face a challenging situation.
Live streaming
Ariana TV for Afghanistan and TVNZ for New Zealand. The Kiwi fans can also stream the matches live on Sky Sports. These are some official sources for these parts of the world.
Fans in Pakistan can enjoy live streaming on three different platforms. For PC users, the Tamasha website works well. This has been a lifesaver. Besides that, you can stream matches on the Daraz and Shoq apps.
Read: ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Live Streaming
The fans from MENA can tune in to Starzplay. Fans worldwide can enjoy the streaming if they buy an affordable subscription from Tampad.
Predictions
You can’t predict anything anymore. Firstly, Afghanistan beat England in Match 14. The England vs Afghanistan match showed the capabilities of this ODI team. After that, the Netherlands vs South Africa game has shown the supremacy of associate nations in the ODI format. These teams have cemented their place in this World Cup.
Afghanistan will have Gurbaz, Nabi, and Rashid Khan to look forward to for this match. Mujeeb can chip, but that will require a vast deal of consistency. On the other hand, the Black Caps look a lot more stable.
So, New Zealand will win the match.
Highlights
Afghanistan won the toss, and they chose to field first. Can they bowl out the opposition again? We will see.
Playing 11
| AFGHANISTAN | NEW ZEALAND |
|---|---|
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | Devon Conway |
| Ibrahim Zadran | Will Young |
| Rahmat Shah | Rachin Ravindra |
| Hashmatullah Shahidi | Daryl Mitchell |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | Tom Latham |
| Ikram Alikhil | Glenn Philips |
| Mohammad Nabi | Mark Chapman |
| Rashid Khan | Mitchell Santner |
| Mujeeb ur Rahman | Matt Henry |
| Naveen Ul Haq | Trent Boult |
| Fazalhaq Farooqi | Lockie Ferguson |
First Innings – New Zealand
| NEW ZEALAND 288-6 (50 overs) | |
| BATTING | BOWLING |
| Glenn Phillips 71 (80) | Naveen-ul-Haq 2-48 |
| Tom Latham 68 (74) | Azmatullah Omarzai 2-56 |
| Will Young 54 (64) | Rashid Khan 1-43 |
| TARGET | 289 runs from 50 overs |
- Afghanistan bowlers did their jobs well, beginning with Mujeeb, who had Conway out early.
- Will Young fought hard for a fifty, while Rachin Ravindra looked a little shaky in his effort as New Zealand struggled to score. Ravindra was a big one.
- Then Omarzai bowled a terrific session, dismissing both set hitters as Rashid priced out Daryl Mitchell early.
- The Afghan spinners bowled well, but the fielders let them down, allowing Glenn Phillips and Tom Latham to form a partnership.
- Rashid Khan should have taken four wickets but only got one as New Zealand found a great platform to attack at the finish.
- Naveen-ul-Haq bowled both set hitters in one over late in the innings, but Mark Chapman came in and swung freely.
- His runs helped New Zealand finish with 288 points.
Second Innings – Afghanistan
| AFGHANISTAN 139-10 (34.4 overs) | |
| BATTING | BOWLING |
| Rahmat Shah 36 (62) | Lockie Ferguson 3-19 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai 27 (32) | Mitchell Santner 3-39 |
| Ikram Alikhil 19 (21) | Trent Boult 2-18 |
| RESULT | New Zealand won by 149 runs |
- A total meltdown by the Afghanistan batters. This was a good day for the Black Caps.
- Only Rahmat Shan and Omarzai were able to show some promise. However, the pitch was friendly for Boult and Ferguson today. Either it is this, or Afghanistan couldn’t play the Kiwi pacers.
- There’s no excuse for the batters today. They got exposed entirely in front of quality bowling from the New Zealand bowlers.
- After Boult and Co rattled up the top and middle order, Ferguson and Santner cleaned up the rest of the batting lineup.
Man of the match
Glenn Philips got the POTM for his anchor innings. New Zealand was in trouble. But his partnership with Tom Latham saved the Black Caps. Now New Zealand are at the top of the points table, and possibly the only team that has a confirmed ticket for the Semi-Finals.
