Twitter Reactions: Afghanistan complete hat-trick of wins by beating Netherlands in Lucknow

Afghanistan continued their dream run in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 as they beat the Netherlands by seven wickets on Friday, November 03 at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow. After opting to bat first, Netherlands were bundled out for 179 in 46.3 overs as Mohammad Nabi picked a three-wicket haul. In reply, Afghanistan chased down the target in 31.3 overs to complete a hat-trick of wins in the tournament.

The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side lost their opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz (10 off 11) cheaply, leaving them on 27/1 after 5.3 overs. His partner Ibrahim Zadran (20 off 34) also got dismissed cheaply as Afghanistan lost their second wicket with 55 runs on the board. After the early blows, Rahmat Shah (52 off 54) and Hashmatullah Shahidi (56* off 64) got involved in a 74-run stand for the third wicket to stabilize the innings.

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Saqib Zulfiqar got the third success for his side by dismissing Shah in the 23^rd over. However, it was too late for the Dutch as Azmatullah Omarzai (31* off 28) and captain Shahidi got involved in another 52-run stand to help their side reach home in just 31.3 overs and won the match by seven wickets.

Earlier in the innings, Netherlands got off to the worst possible start as their opener Wesley Barresi (1 off 4) was dismissed in the very first over by Mujeeb ur Rahman. After the early blow, Max O'Dowd (42 off 40) and Colin Ackermann (29 off 35) stabilized the innings with their 70-run stand. However, the Dutch suffered a dramatic collapse and lost their next three wickets via run-outs to be left reeling at 92/4 after 18.4 overs.

Sybrand Engelbrecht was the top-scorer for Netherlands

Afghan spinners further made matters worse for the Dutch along with run-outs as they were bundled out for just 179 in 46.3 overs. Sybrand Engelbrecht finished as the top scorer for the Netherlands with his innings of 58 (86) while Mohammad Nabi finished as the pick of the bowlers for Afghanistan (3/28 in 9.3 overs).

Courtesy of their win, Afghanistan climbed to the fifth spot in the ODI World Cup 2023 Points Table with four wins from seven matches, having eight points to their name.

Meanwhile, X was buzzing with reactions on Afghanistan’s third consecutive win. Here are some of the posts: