ICC World Cup 2023: Netherlands win toss and opt to bat first against Afghanistan
Netherlands won the toss and opted to bat first against Afghanistan in today's match of ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023.
Lucknow: Netherlands won the toss and opted to bat first against Afghanistan in today’s match of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
Afghanistan, currently ranked 6th, has the opportunity to make history by reaching the semi-finals if they finish among the top 4 teams in this World Cup. Losing this match is not an option for Afghanistan since their remaining fixtures are against formidable opponents, Australia and South Africa. A victory against the Netherlands would put them on par with Australia and New Zealand, currently ranked 3rd and 4th respectively.
In their nine One Day Internationals (ODIs) against each other, Afghanistan has won seven matches, while the Netherlands has won two. In their most recent encounter in January 2022 in Doha, Qatar, Afghanistan dominated by winning the ODI series 3-0.
On the other hand, until now, the Netherland’s was not aware that a rule change allowed lower-ranked teams a chance to qualify for the Champions Trophy 2025 if they finish among the top 8 teams in the ICC World Cup 2023. This revelation should serve as inspiration for the Dutch team to aim for a victory against Afghanistan, even if they technically have a slim chance of progressing further in the tournament.
Playing XI
Netherlands: Wesley Barresi, Max ODowd, Colin Ackermann, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Scott Edwards(w/c), Bas de Leede, Saqib Zulfiqar, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Aryan Dutt, Paul van Meekeren
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Also Read: ICC World Cup 2023: Netherlands Vs Afghanistan Match Preview
Ms Kalinga