Australia reached the semifinals of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 with an astonishing win over Afghanistan on Tuesday as Glenn Maxwell’s unbeaten double-ton helped the 5-time champions nearly escape a massive upset.
Chasing a target of 292, Australia were reeling at 91 for 7 before Maxwell took the game away from the Afghan side with his incredible unbeaten 201 off just 128 deliveries.
Follow all the action from the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 including the World Cup schedule, World Cup 2023 results, and ICC Cricket World Cup points table. Players are vying to top the World Cup 2023 Most Runs and World Cup 2023 Most Wickets charts.
At the post-match presentation, Australia skipper Pat Cummins was at a loss for words to describe his teammate’s innings.
“Ridiculous. I don’t know how to describe it. Great win! It has got to be the greatest thing that has ever happened,” Cummins began.
“Maxwell was great, he was calm and always had a plan,” he continued.
“It was one of those days people will say yeah, I was at the stadium for this game. Even from 200 behind to be able to win the game that way was really special. It is important to remember you can win from anywhere.”
“We had real belief in the team and we are in the semi-finals now, that’s great,” the Aussie captain said.
Maxwell was in visible discomfort during his innings and went to ground a couple of times as he tugged at his aching leg.
When asked if Maxwell wanted to retire hurt, Cummins said, “We had two NSW players lining up, Zampa was on and off three times, but Maxi wanted to stay out there.”
Despite the awe-inspiring innings from the all-rounder, Cummins agreed that Australia could have fared better in multiple areas of the game, but added he would save the scrutiny for another time.
“Don’t think it is the time and the place, I’m going to pause on that. I think the toss is a bit tricky out here, the first 20 overs are key. There are things we could have done better,” Cummins opined.
Afghanistan captain, Hashmatullah Shahidi, expressed that the team was disappointed to slip up from a strong position. But, lauded Maxwell’s innings.
” We are very disappointed. Cricket is a funny game, it was unbelievable for us. We were in the game, our bowlers started very well and the dropped chances hurt us.”
“After that, Maxwell didn’t stop, he played every kind of shot and I can give credit to him,” Shahidi said.
Shahidi opined that the missed opportunities in the field cost them the game as Maxwell helped navigate their way to a memorable victory.
“I think the dropped catches were the key, after that Maxwell played well. Our bowlers tried their best but he didn’t give us any chance.”
The Afghan skipper expressed how proud he was of the team despite the loss and pointed to the beauty in the uncertain nature of the sport.
“Proud of the team, but we will be disappointed tonight. We didn’t think it would be this way, but it is part of the game. This is cricket.”
Shahidi paid a special mention to Ibrahim Zadran, who made an unbeaten 129 runs to help Afghanistan put up a strong total, stating how proud he was of the batsman for bringing up a maiden World Cup ton for any Afghan player.
“Ibrahim Zadran must be proud of himself, I am also proud that he is the first Afghan with a WC hundred.”
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