Pakistan's misery continued at the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 as they fell to a third consecutive loss in the tournament, this time to Afghanistan by an eight-wicket margin. The latest defeat has dealt a hammer blow to their chances of making it to the semi-finals.
Batting first in Chennai, Pakistan posted 282 on the board. Abdullah Shafique (58) and Babar Azam (74) scored half-centuries to guide Pakistan to a decent total. But Afghanistan chased it down easily, scoring 286-2 in 49 overs.
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India's cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar took to social media to praise Afghanistan for their remarkable performance and lauded the "influence" of Ajay Jadeja who joined as a mentor to the team before the World Cup.
What did Sachin Tendulkar & Shoaib Malik say about Ajay Jadeja?
"Afghanistan's performance at this World Cup has been nothing short of outstanding. Their discipline with the bat, the temperament they've shown, and aggressive running between the wickets reflect their hard work. It could possibly be due to a certain Mr. Ajay Jadeja's influence," Tendulkar said.
Afghanistan's performance at this World Cup has been nothing short of outstanding. Their discipline with the bat, the temperament they've shown, and aggressive running between the wickets reflects their hard work. It could possibly be due to a certain Mr. Ajay Jadeja's influence.… pic.twitter.com/12FaLICQPs
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) October 23, 2023
“With a formidable bowling lineup, their victories over teams like England and Pakistan indicate the emergence of a new Afghanistan team. The cricket world is taking note. Well done! #PAKvsAFG,” Tendulkar added.
On the other hand, Malik revealed that he is a great admirer of Jadeja's cricketing brain and believes that it is one of the factors behind Afghanistan's rise in the World Cup.
"I have seen Ajay Jadeja sitting in their dugout. I have worked with him during the 2015 World Cup for one of the channels in India and he has a great cricketing mind. And having bright people around the team does matter," he added.
Misbah-Ul-Haq: Afghanistan have instilled fear among opposition
Misbah-Ul-Haq believes that the sky is the limit for this fearless Afghan team who are soaring high on confidence after beating defending champions England and Pakistan.
Misbah opined that they have the potential to make it to the top four after announcing themselves on the grandest stage of international cricket, courtesy of beating the two heavyweights.
"I think they are playing wonderful cricket and they are confident in their way of going about things. They are spot on with their claim that they are not here to win one game. They said they want to go forward and qualify for the knockouts and if they keep playing this way they have a good chance.
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"They have the X-factor and after beating England and Pakistan they have managed to instill a fear among the opposition. So now the teams who will be playing them next will be under pressure. Afghanistan want to build on that. They used to choke while chasing, but now they have done it quite incredibly. They can still improve, win matches and give a tough time to the opposition," the former Pakistan batsman stated.
Will Pakistan make it to the ICC CWC 2023 semifinals?
Pakistan have their remaining matches against South Africa, Bangladesh, New Zealand, and England. At least three of the four opponents would be fighting for a place in the knockout stages of the ICC ODI World Cup.
Let us not forget that New Zealand and South Africa are better placed than Pakistan as of October 23, 2023. England are at the bottom of the table, with Pakistan placed at the fifth position.
Scenario 1: Pakistan win all their matches of the season
Even if Pakistan were win the rest of their games in the group stage, they would end up with six wins, at 12 points. India and New Zealand already have ten and eight points respectively.
Beating England and Bangladesh would see them off the qualification race, but they would still have to depend on the results of Australia.
Scenario 2: Pakistan lose one of their matches of the season
Losing any one of their remaining matches of the group stage would place Pakistan at a massive risk for losing out on qualification. Losing against New Zealand or South Africa would place them above the Men in Green on the points table. Losing against England or Bangladesh would have a massive dent on their hopes as well.
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Scenario 3: Pakistan lose more than one of their matches of the season
Losing more than one of the four games at the World Cup would be the end of the story for the Men in Green. Pakistan would be out of the qualification race if they lost more than one game.
Scenario 4: If Australia win all their matches of the season
Let us assume Pakistan win all their remaining four matches of the ICC ODI World Cup. Direct competitors Australia have one game in hand as of October 23. The Aussies have five games remaining, to Pakistan's four. If Aussies won their remaining five games, they would qualify ahead of Pakistan for the semi-finals.
How many points do Pakistan need to make the World Cup semi-finals?
The maximum points that Pakistan could reach at the end of their group stage is 12. However, judging by what happened in the 2019 World Cup, 12 points could be enough to see a team reach the semifinal. Pakistan cannot make any mistakes from here on out.
MORE: When is Pakistan's next ODI World Cup match?
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