Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib faced the wrath of angry cricket fans after his glory-seeking performance against Pakistan in their ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 group match at Headingley, Leeds on Saturday.
After setting a modest target of 228 runs, Afghanistan dominated the large part of the Pakistan innings, but they wilted under pressure, missing run outs and catches towards the dramatic end.
What angered the fans most was the selfish approach from the captain, who according to fans gave away the match on a platter after their bowlers fought hard to gain the upper hand against the former champions.
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Spinners turned the match on its head by reducing Pakistan to 156 for six and the modest 228-run target was now looking like a mountain to scale for the 1992 champions.
It was Mujeeb ur Rahman (2/34) and Mohammed Nabi (2/23) who saw off the Pakistan top-order to set it up nicely for Afghanistan.
When seasoned Rashid Khan got rid of Haris Sohail (27), Afghanistan sensed an upset and Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed (18) helped the Afghan cause by running himself out at crucial juncture.
There was no Babar Azam (45) or Sohail at the crease to rescue Pakistan, who required 46 from the last five overs.
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Then, Afghan skipper Gulbadin reintroduced himself into the attack. And he ended up leaking 18 runs in the 46th over with Wasim finding three boundaries in that over. It titled the match heavily in the favour of Pakistan.
With 16 needed off 12 balls, Riaz launched Rashid for a massive six in the second ball and eventually Pakistan needed six from last over.
Gulabdin brought himself again into the attack but Wasim steered him for a four in the fourth ball to finish it off for his side.
With this win, Pakistan have now jumped to the fourth spot with nine points, pushing hosts England to five. They would pray that India beat England tomorrow to enhance Pakistan's semifinal chances.
