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Afghanistan’s decisive victory over the Netherlands maintains them in the running for the semi-final qualifying spots. Afghanistan chased down the target of 180 runs with 7 wickets and 111 balls remaining. Skipper, Hashmatullah Shahidi scored an unbeaten 56 runs and was provided support by Rahmat Shah who scored 52 runs. Here is a recap of the second innings.
Afghanistan controls powerplay
Rahmanullah Gurbaz hit a boundary in the opening over, giving Afghanistan the best possible start to their chase, as nine runs were scored in the Aryan Dutt over. Early in the innings (2.6), a loud cry for LBW against Ibrahim Zadran was denied. Replays revealed that the ball missed the leg stump while spinning down the leg. In the fourth over, Gurbaz hit another four, but this time it was Logan van Beek who was hit. In the fifth over, Zadran struck his first boundary as the Dutch team kept giving runs away.
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Taking Gurbaz out in the sixth over, Van Beek claimed the first wicket of the innings. The ruling was reversed after a successful review by skipper Scott Edwards. The caught behind was initially denied. Rahmat Shah appeared quite well-groomed as soon as he reached the crease. The tenth over saw the skilled Afghan batsman smash three boundaries, providing a decisive finish to the powerplay. Afghanistan lost just one wicket while scoring 55 runs during the powerplay.
Afghanistan cruise to victory
Following the powerplay, veteran off-spinner Roelof van der Merwe was introduced, and he quickly made an impact on the match. On the first ball of his innings, Van der Merwe got rid of Zadran. Zadran hit two fours and scored 20 runs off of 34 balls. Their dreams of winning this match were dashed as Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi batted easily against the Dutch. Together, they batted well, scoring 62 runs in 10 overs (12–21).
In this phase, Paul van Meekeren bowled a two-run 14th over after giving up six runs in the 12th over. Both Shah and Shahidi found simple singles and doubles against van der Merwe, along with the occasional strange boundary. In the sixteenth over, Dutt returned to the assault, taking van Meekeren’s place. The youthful right-arm off-spinner gave up 11 runs in his two overs without being able to take a wicket or bowl well.
In the twentieth over, the 50-run partnership was brought in. In the same over, Shah reached his half-century with an alluring straight drive. After coming into the attack, 26-year-old leg spinner Saqib Zulfiqar let up 13 runs in his opening over. He was struck for a four on both the next delivery and the free hit after bowling a no-ball. In the twenty-third over, Shah, a half-centurion, was dismissed by Zulfiqar. Afghanistan raised their scoring rate to meet the winning total of 31 runs. In the 28th over, Azmatullah Omarzai and Shahidi both hammered one boundary. In the thirtyth over, Omarzai struck again another four. In the 31st over and 59 balls, Shahidi reached his third half-century of this tournament and 19th overall in ODIs.