Jos Buttler during the World Cup cricket match against Afghanistan© AFP
England achieved the unwanted record of losing to all 11 Test nations at the Cricket World Cup after being stunned by Afghanistan on Sunday. England are the first ever team to achieve the feat as they were completely outmatched by Afghanistan during the 2023 Cricket World Cup match in New Delhi. In the first two editions of the tournament, England lost to Australia in 1975 and then to the West Indies in the 1979 final. In 1983 and 1987 they suffered losses at the hands of India and Pakistan respectively. They were also defeated by New Zealand in 1983, with a shocking result.
In 1992 they faced their first defeat against Zimbabwe and in 1996 they were defeated by eventual champions Si Lanka and South Africa. Bangladesh defeated England in a big upset in 2011 and in the same tournament, Ireland produced one of the best chases in World Cup history.
With the loss in Afghanistan, the defending champions have now lost to all test countries.
Afghanistan pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the Cricket World Cup when they defeated defending champions England by 69 runs in New Delhi on Sunday.
The Afghans’ epic triumph against the overwhelming favourites, one of the game’s traditional heavyweights, was a reflection of the spirit and courage of the battle-hardened tribe from the country ravaged by years of war and internal conflict.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz provided an early impetus while Ikram Alikhil provided the final flourish to guide Afghanistan to a competitive 284 all out after coming into bat.
The Afghan bowlers then flourished under lights and made a collective effort to bundle England for 215 runs in 40.3 overs and record only their second World Cup victory, eight years since their last against Scotland in Australia.
Although this was Afghanistan’s first win in the ongoing tournament after two defeats, England slumped to their second defeat from three matches.
Rashid Khan (3/37) and Mujeeb Ur Rahman (3/51) were the pick of the Afghan bowlers.
Harry Brook (66 off 61) was the only shining light in what was a dismal batting display from England.
(With PTI inputs)
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