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Dropping as many as five catches at crucial junctures and failing to read the nature of the track became their undoing, Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi said after his team's humiliating 149-run defeat at the hands of New Zealand in a World Cup game on Wednesday. Batting first, New Zealand scored 288/6 in 50 overs and Glenn Phillips (71) and Tom Latham (68) got reprieves at opportune moments to conjure a match-winning 144-run stand. In reply, Afghanistan were bowled out for 139 in 34.4 overs. "Very disappointed because at this level you have to take those kind of catches. End of the day those catches hurt us as otherwise the team was doing well but the fielding let us a little bit down," Shahidi was straight-forward in his assessment. Afghanistan conceded 78 runs in the last six overs and it was the turning point on a track that offered a lot of turn. "Last six overs, a lot of runs were scored by New Zealand. Before that, we dropped two catches before t...

India's unbeaten run in the ongoing World Cup has been a result of their all-round performances with the bat and the ball as well as one of the less talked about aspects in cricket, fielding. Stalwart batter Virat Kohli who is well known for his refined batting skills, has been a crucial figure in the field as he tops the chart of players with the biggest impact on the field after the conclusion of the first three games for each country. Kohli has completed a total of three catches in India's three World Cup 2023 matches. He is two shy of tournament leaders for non-wicket-keepers Matt Henry of New Zealand and Australia's experienced opener David Warner . However, his impact on the field stretched much further than that. Kohli is in a league of his own on the list of runs saved and pressure ratings after the conclusion of three matches for all teams at the event and his total of 22.30 points allows him to sit comfortably at the top spot for fielding impact at the World C...

The Netherlands defeated South Africa by 38 runs at the Cricket World Cup on Tuesday, beating a Test-playing nation at the tournament for the first time. Chasing 246 to win from a rain-reduced 43 overs after Dutch captain Scott Edwards made a crucial 78 not out, South Africa, one of the tournament favourites, were bowled out for 207 in the shadow of the Himalayas. In November last year, the Dutch sent South Africa crashing of the T20 World Cup in Australia. The victory was the World Cup's second major shock in three days after Afghanistan defeated defending champions England on Sunday. A look at six other stunning wins in the history of the tournament: Zimbabwe beat Australia by 13 runs, Nottingham, June 9, 1983 -  Playing in their first ever One-Day International, Zimbabwe stunned an Australian side boasting the likes of Allan Border, Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson in the opening game of the tournament at Trent Bridge. Batting first, Zimbabwe rode on the back of...

South Africa's march in the ODI Cricket World Cup 2023 came to a rude halt as they slumped to a loss against Netherlands. Coming into the Cricket World Cup match, hardly anybody would have expected the result but the Netherlands team kept the believe in themselves to cause a major upset against the world No. 3 ODI team South Africa. Netherlands, in a rain-curtailed match with the number of overs reduced to 43 per side, notched a good total of 245/8. In reply, South Africa could never stitch a great stand and managed just 207 in 42.5 overs.  Before the match, South Africa were placed third with a net run-rate of +2.360. After the loss, though their position did not change, their net run-rate got reduced to +1.385. Netherlands, so far the last team in the 10-team table, is currently ninth. India continue to lead the table. Scott Edwards played a captain's knock to lead the Netherlands' remarkable recovery and take them to 245 for eight in a rain-hit game against South A...

Strong winds caused several hoardings to fall from the roof of the Ekana Stadium on to the seats below during the World Cup match between Australia and Sri Lanka in Lucknow on Monday. After rain stopped play for a bit, there was a dust storm and heavy winds led to several iron angles with branding material from the roof falling on people sitting at the lower levels. The situation could have turned worse, but luckily, the stands were relatively empty. It did, however, cause panic among those who were watching the game as the public announcement asked spectators to move to safety of the upper decks. Asked about the incident after the match, Australia leg-spinner Adam Zampa , one of the star performers of the game with figures of 4/47, said, "Never been a part of that, never seen something like that. But there was no one hurt hopefully. There was a metal pole coming down I've never seen anything like that." By the time the second innings began the security had moved all s...

The India vs Pakistan ODI Cricket World Cup match turned out to be quite a celebratory affair for the Indian cricket team fans. In the Cricket World Cup group stage match in Ahmedabad on Saturday, the Rohit Sharma -led Indian cricket team dominated all aspects of the game to register a seven-wicket win and go on top of the Cricket World Cup points table. Indian bowlers kept a tight leash on the Pakistan batters, who went from 155/2 to 191 all out, after Rohit Sharma had opted to bowl first. Then, Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma (86) and Shreyas Iyer (53*) ensured that India reach the 192-run target in just 30.3 overs. Even with a low total, it was expected that Pakistan would deliver a fight, especially with the likes of Shaheen Afridi , Haris Rauf , and Hasan Ali in their ranks. Though Shaheen took the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill , he did not look menacing.  In fact, former Indian cricket team coach Ravi Shastri was not impressed with him at all. When Ind...

Pakistan players chose to confine themselves to their hotel rooms upon their arrival in Bengaluru from Ahmedabad on Sunday, but the relatively low-key touchdown did not prevent them from celebrating the birthday of captain Babar Azam. The players cut a cake at the team hotel as Babar turned 29 on Sunday. "It was a small function attended by the players and support staff. There were not many activities today as it was a travel day, and the team will soon start preparations for the upcoming matches," said an official travelling with the team. Pakistan will face Australia on October 20 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, and they will be eager to give a better account of themselves after the seven-wicket mauling at the hands of India on Saturday. This is also Pakistan's first visit to Bengaluru since 2012. They had then beaten India by five wickets in the first T20I match of the two-match series. Pakistan have also played just two ODIs in the Garden City - in the quarterfinals ...