Consider the most legendary fighters in the annals of human history. Think of figures like Alexander, Genghis Khan, and Julius Caesar, and now you can include a contemporary warrior of great renown. His name is Glenn Maxwell.
In an inning that seemed to defy all logic, pushing the boundaries of human performance, Glenn Maxwell, despite being hampered by a semi-functional back and relying heavily on just one leg, steered Australia from the brink of defeat to the heights of victory. Fuelled by sheer adrenaline, Maxwell, known as the “Big Show,” has now etched his name into the cricketing annals as an enduring legend.
Australia successfully pursued a target of 292, even though they were struggling at 91/7 initially. In this remarkable partnership, one of the players contributed 12 runs off 68 balls, while the other player, despite having a severely injured back, bore the burden of his team’s performance.
Glenn Maxwell was declared player of the match for his incredible double hundred.
He received a fortunate opportunity when Shahidi couldn’t reach a mishit, and an LBW review turned in his favor as the ball from Noor Ahmed was expected to miss the stumps. However, his most fortunate moment occurred when Mujeeb dropped a simple catch at a short, fine leg. Maxwell, recognizing that luck was on his side and with no constraints, decided to go all out against the Afghan bowlers.
Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahid won the toss and elected to bat first against Australia in a crucial clash of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2023 here at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday.
Australia faces a challenging task at the Wankhede Stadium as they aim to secure a spot in the semi-finals with a record-breaking chase of 292 runs. Afghanistan delivered an exceptional batting performance, notably led by opener Ibrahim Zadran, who scored an unbeaten 129 off 143 balls. This was his fifth ODI century and a historic achievement as the first Afghan batsman to score a hundred in a Cricket World Cup.
Throughout their innings, Afghanistan formed valuable partnerships, including an 83-run stand for the second wicket with Rahmat Shah. Although there were moments when it seemed they weren’t maximizing their batting potential, they had a well-thought-out strategy. By preserving wickets, they executed their plan in the final few overs with impressive cameos from Azmatullah and Rashid Khan, the latter finishing with an unbeaten 35 off 18 balls.
The Australian bowling attack performed admirably for the most part, but there were some puzzling decisions made by captain Pat Cummins regarding bowling changes.