Highlights, India vs Afghanistan, 2019 World Cup, Match 28: Shami hat-trick helps India clinch thriller against Afghanistan
Highlights, India vs Afghanistan, 2019 World Cup: Hello and welcome to our live coverage of ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match 28 between India and Afghanistan live from The Rose Bowl in Southampton. So far, so good for Afghanistan. They started nervously but the current partnership has settled things down. India are under pressure at the moment. They have pinned all their hopes on their spinners, who have bowled tidily but have failed to provide any breakthrough. 164 needed more off 204 balls. It is all about holding nerves for the Asian minnow. They should know that if they bat out 50 overs, this is their game in all likelihood. Here you can follow IND live score, India vs Afghanistan live score, India vs Afghanistan live, India Afghanistan live score, IND vs AFG live score, IND AFG live score, India vs Afghanistan (When and Where to Watch - IND v AFG) (Match Scorecard)
India beat Afghanistan by 11 runs
Afghanistan Innings:
23.05 IST: Yet another cliffhanger! Sri Lanka punched above their weight last evening to upset England and now Afghanistan nearly got the better of India. World Cup is surely warming up with some really close contests now.
23.02 IST: What an end to this thriller! Well done Afghanistan for making India work hard for their 50th World Cup win! They gave a real scare to the Men in Blue and won hearts of everyone with their lion-hearted effort. The Afghans will be disappointed on missing out on a golden opportunity to upset one of the title favourites. But chin up, you have done everyone proud.
23.00 IST: Mohammed Shami to Mujeeb Ur Rahman, OUT! KABOOM! Shami take a hat-trick! What a comeback into the team for him. He was given the responsibility of the last over and has come out with flying colors. He keeps it simple, goes full and straight, right at the base of the leg stump. Mujeeb swings but misses and the ball kisses the leg pole. All smiles in the Indian camp AS THEY WIN BY 11 RUNS!
22.58 IST: Mohammed Shami to Aftab Alam, OUT! TIMBER! Two in two for Shami. What a comeback from him after going for a boundary on the first ball. He is delighted. He punches his fist in joy. He attacks the stumps, Alam swings but misses. The furniture behind is disturbed.
* Aftab Alam is the new man in.
22.57 IST: Mohammed Shami to Mohammad Nabi, OUT! There goes Nabi and there goes all the hopes of Afghanistan chasing this down. The Indian supporters and the Indian players can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
22.55 IST: Mohammed Shami to Mohammad Nabi, FOUR! Once again a boundary to begin Shami's over! Ideal start for Afghanistan. Shami misses the yorker by a little and ends up bowling a low full toss. Nabi powers it past long on for a boundary. Also, fifty up for Nabi. His 14th ODi fifty. Can he win Afghanistan the game.
* 16 needed off 6 balls. Mohammed Shami to bowl it. Nabi will be on strike. Can Afghanistan pull it off?
22.53 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Ikram Ali Khil, Just the single again! Full and outside off, Ikram jams it through covers for one. One ball to go, what will Nabi do? Go for a biggie or take one?
22.51 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Mohammad Nabi, Top class stuff! Bowls another yorker on middle, all Nabi can do is jam it down to long on for one. Also, Ikram comes on strike.
22.45 IST: Mohammed Shami to Ikram Ali Khil, Another dot! Goes short and on the body, Ikram ducks under it. 23 needed in 13 now.
22.42 IST: Mohammed Shami to Mohammad Nabi, NOT OUT! Nabi survives! The impact is outside off! What a review taken by him. Afghanistan can now breathe a huge sigh of relief. They are still in it. Nabi shuffles across and looks to flick it on the leg side. He misses. The ball hits the pads and an appeal follows. The umpire raises the finger. Nabi has to review and he does so. Replays roll in and they show the impact is outside off.
* Massive moment in this match! Mohammad Nabi has been adjudged lbw! The impact appears to be outside the line. He has taken the DRS. Phew, let's wait and watch what the Ball Tracker tells us. IMPACT IS THE ISSUE! Nabi survives.
22.38 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Mohammad Nabi, SIX! What a hit! Bumrah bangs this short and on middle, Nabi stays back and pulls it over the square leg fence for a biggie.
22.34 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Rashid Khan, OUT! Stumped! Beauty of a delivery. One leggie to another leggie and it's a beautiful sight, if you are an Indian fan. Nicely tossed up ball by Chahal. He serves it full and outside off, Rashid is drawn forward as tries to drive but it spins away to beat the outside edge. He has dragged his back leg outside the crease in a process as well and Dhoni needs no second invitation. 35 needed off 26 balls, this is getting close!
22.32 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Rashid Khan, FOUR! Innovation at its best! That's a brilliant strike. Yes, it's risky but he has paid off. Full and around off, Rashid brings out the reverse-batted shot and nails his shot over point.
22.29 IST: Mohammed Shami to Mohammad Nabi, A big shout for LBW but not given! Nabi looks to whip it over the short fine leg fielder but misses to get hit on the pads. There is an appeal but it is too high. The ball rolls towards square leg. A leg bye taken.
22.25 IST: Mohammed Shami to Mohammad Nabi, FOUR! Lovely shot! Once again, a boundary of Shami's first ball of the over. Puts all the pressure on the bowler. Nabi uses his feet and coverts it into a half volley. Nabi hits it over mid off and bags a boundary.
* Mohammed Shami comes back on.
22.22 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Rashid Khan, Khan makes room, Bumrah bangs it short. Rashid manages to slap it wide of sweeper cover and two is taken.
22.16 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Rashid Khan, Nicely played! Just outside off, Rashid goes back and manages to cut it through point for two.
22.12 IST: Hardik Pandya to Najibullah Zadran, OUT! Soft, soft dismissal! Hardik Pandya strikes in his last over. Gets his second and another important wicket. He bowls the off cutter on middle, Zadran looks to flick but the ball sticks in the surface. NZ ends up chipping it straight to the fielder at mid-wicket where Chahal makes no mistake. A decent innings from Zadran but he needed to continue. India though will be relieved to see the back of him as this partnership was starting to worry them. 59 needed in 51.
22.08 IST: Mohammed Shami to Najibullah Zadran, On the bounce! The slower one on middle, Zadran looks to flick but was into the shot way too early. It goes off the leading edge and falls just short of Chahal at mid-wicket.
22.06 IST: Mohammed Shami to Najibullah Zadran, FOUR! Brilliant start to Powerplay 3 for Afghanistan! A little too straight by Shami, Zadran goes back and works it through mid-wicket. No chance for the deep square leg fielder. Shami under pressure, needs to bowl the next 5 balls nicely.
22.02 IST: Hardik Pandya to Najibullah Zadran, Uppish but just wide! Length and around off, Zadran drives it on the up, it goes uppishly through extra cover for two.
21.56 IST: Mohammed Shami to Najibullah Zadran, FOUR! Up and over the infield! Minimum risk with mid off up in the circle. A length delivery around off, Najibullah strides forward and lofts it over the in-ring fielder for a boundary.
21.53 IST: Kuldeep Yadav to Mohammad Nabi, Another single as this is worked through square leg for one. Runs between runs needed and balls to be bowled is 10. 82 needed in 72.
21.49 IST: Mohammed Shami to Najibullah Zadran, Very good running! Goes short and on the body, Zadran nudges it towards backward square leg. They take one, Zadran calls for a second. They go for it and complete it.
* Mohammad Shami is back on, replacing Yuzvendra Chahal. He was exception in his first spell. 4-1-6-1 for his so far.
21.43 IST: Kuldeep Yadav to Najibullah Zadran, Straightaway goes for the reverse sweep. Hits it well through point. The batters take two. The throw from the deep was a good one but the batters was well in.
* Najibullah Zadran walks out to bat.
21.41 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Asghar Afghan, OUT! TIMBER! Chahal has got the breakthrough. Once again, just as Afghanistan seemed like they were moving ahead, India strike. Yuzvendra tosses it up on off, it is the leg spinner. Afghan looks to hit it against the turn over the leg side. He misses and the ball kisses the off pole.
21.37 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Mohammad Nabi, FOUR! Great start to the over! Pressure on the bowler. Less than a 100 needed now. Nabi brings out the sweep shot, hits it nicely and past the diving short fine leg fielder for a boundary.
21.32 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Mohammad Nabi, FOUR! What a shot! Chahal slows this up in the air but lands it a touch short outside off, Nabi rocks back and cuts it through the line. Once it beats the diving point fielder, it's always going to the fence.
*Yuzvendra Chahal back on for India
21.27 IST: Hardik Pandya to Mohammad Nabi, It lands in no man's land! Nabi looks to go big. He tries to hit this ball outside off over cover. He ends up slicing it over point. Rahul from point runs back, Shankar from sweeper cover runs in, both don't call for it and in the end it lands between the two. The batsmen also run two.
21.21 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Asghar Afghan, Excellent fielding! First an excellent catch and now this fielding effort from Chahal. This is on the pads, Afghan works it fine on the leg side, Chahal runs to his right, dives and pushes it back in. Two taken.
21.14 IST: Hardik Pandya to Mohammad Nabi, Well bowled! India have their tail up at the moment. A yorker on middle, Nabi jams it out.
*Hardik Pandya back on for India
*Mohammad Nabi comes in to bat.
21.10 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Hashmatullah Shahidi, OUT! Caught and bowled! Bumrah has turned things around and is sending jitters to the Afghan dressing room. He switches to 'round the wicket for the left-hander and delivers a back of a length ball around off. Shahidi is stuck inside the crease and plays his shot early. The face of the bat is closed when the ball arrives and it lobs back off the leading edge. Bumrah runs forward to complete the catch and throws the ball up in celebration.
*Asghar Afghan is the next man in.
21.08 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Rahmat Shah, OUT! OUT! Superb catch by Yuzvendra Chahal! India get a lifeline here. The 42-run stand is broken and the crowd has also come back to life. Bowling short more often than not works against the Asian batsmen. Bumrah digs it in at 144 kph, nicely directed, Shah takes on the challenge to pull but fails to middle his shot. It flies off the top edge behind square leg and Chahal rushes forward and across from the deep to take a fine low catch. 119 needed more!
21.06 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Rahmat Shah, Appeal for an lbw! Nothing from umpire Aleem Dar. Virat Kohli is furious. Bumrah darts in a length ball on off and gets it to nip back in at 142 kph. Shah is caught on the back foot trying to block but is beaten in pace. He is rapped on the pads, they appeal but to no avail. It's clipping leg, the replays confirm.
20.59 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Rahmat Shah, Outside edge but short! Slower one and outside off, there is some extra bounce there. Shah looks to guide it down to third man but gets an outside edge which does not carry.
*Jasprit Bumrah back on for India
20.54 IST: Kuldeep Yadav to Rahmat Shah, FOUR! Picks his spot brilliantly! Too short by Kuldeep. Enough time for Shah to go back and pull it in between long on and mid-wicket for a boundary.
20.50 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Hashmatullah Shahidi, NOT OUT! Dual appeal there? First the bowler turned to appeal for an lbw and then Dhoni breaks the stumps to appeal for a stumping. India don't have the review to refer the lbw shout but the square leg umpire is going up to check for the stumping appeal.
20.48 IST: Yuzvendra Chahal to Hashmatullah Shahidi, FOUR! Finds the gap this time! Slightly shorter again and just outside off, Shahidi goes back and plays late, gets it past point and bags a welcome boundary.
20.39 IST: Kuldeep Yadav to Hashmatullah Shahidi, FOUR! Poor delivery and duly punished! A rank long hop on middle, Shahidi goes deep inside the crease and hammers his pull shot to the deep mid-wicket fence.
20.37 IST: Hardik Pandya to Rahmat Shah, FOUR! Much-needed boundary! Releases some pressure. Shah comes down the track and also makes room. He crashes it through covers for a boundary. 5 from the over. Runs needed now below 150.
20.28 IST: A maiden from Hardik Pandya to follow the wicket of Gulbadin Naib in the previous one. India need more wickets here.
*Hashmatullah Shahidi is the next man in
20.19 IST: Hardik Pandya to Gulbadin Naib, OUT! In the air... taken! Excellent bowling change by Kohli. Not many, trust me, after looking at his first spell, not many would have wanted Pandya to bowl at the moment. He though silences his critics by providing the breakthrough India needed. The short ball does the trick for him. It is outside off, Naib looks to pull but only manages a top edge which goes high up in the air towards square leg. Shankar from the deep runs in and takes a good catch. End of a budding stand. 161 more needed.
*Hardik Pandya to resume after the break
*DRINKS! So far, so good for Afghanistan. They started nervously but the current partnership has settled things down. India are under pressure at the moment. They have pinned all their hopes on their spinners, who have bowled tidily but have failed to provide any breakthrough. 164 needed more off 204 balls. It is all about holding nerves for the Asian minnow. They should know that if they bat out 50 overs, this is their game in all likelihood.
20.09 IST: Kuldeep Yadav to Rahmat Shah, NOT OUT! Stumping appeal! MS Dhoni is lightning quick behind the wickets, as usual. He appeals and the square leg umpire refers it upstairs. Rahmat Shah is the batsman in question. Is he safe?
20.05 IST: Kuldeep Yadav to Rahmat Shah, DOT! Just the single from Kuldeep's first. On middle, this is pushed back to the bowler.
*Kuldeep Yadav into the attack
19.56 IST: Hardik Pandya to Gulbadin Naib, FOUR! Clobbered! 50 up for Afghanistan and it has been brought up in style. He goes short again, Naib goes back and hammers it over the mid-wicket fielder for a boundary. Consecutive boundaries. India and Pandya under pressure.
19.56 IST: Hardik Pandya to Gulbadin Naib, FOUR! Up and over! Slightly shorter and on middle, Naib stands tall and lifts it over mid-wicket for a boundary. Pandya is leaking runs here.
19.54 IST: Afghanistan have been watchful so far and going around nicely. Barring the wicket, they have managed to keep the scorecard ticking and put pressure on India
19.49 IST: FIVE WIDES! Bangs this one way too short. It goes well over the batsman's head and then over the keeper's glove for a boundary. Bonues runs for Afghanistan.
*Hardik Pandya into the attack
19.48 IST: 3 runs from the over.
*Yuzvendra Chahal into the attack now
19.40 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Rahmat Shah, That's a nasty delivery. Well-directed short ball, Rahmat tries to duck but the ball doesn't bounce much and hits the batsman on the back of the helmet. It rolls down to fine leg and they cross for a leg bye.
*Rahmat Shah walks out to bat at number 3
19.33 IST: Mohammed Shami to Hazrat Zazai, OUT! KABOOM! Shami gets his man! Just poor, very poor shot selection, that has been the case throughout for the Afghanistan openers, they have been lucky so far but this time, Zazai's luck runs out. Shami goes slightly fuller and around middle, Zazai once again looks to heave it across the line but the ball does not bounce as much as he expected it to and the stumps are shattered.
19.29 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Gulbadin Naib, Just out of the reach of the bowler! Bumrah goes short and on middle, Naib is not sure whether to duck or to play the ball. Till then, the ball hits the bat and lobs to the right of Bumrah. He dives but can't get to it.
19.27 IST: The Indians are keeping it tight but the wickets are not coming for the Men in Blue...Afghanistan openers are hanging out there.
19.18 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Hazrat Zazai, FOUR! Afghanistan won't mind though. Good length and around off, angling away. Zazai looks to defend but the ball flies off the outside edge, past the diving Kohli at second slip and races to the third man fence. First boundary of the bat.
19.15 IST: Maiden from Shami. This is a great start from the pacer.
19.13 IST: Mohammed Shami to Hazrat Zazai, NOT OUT! That has pitched outside leg! India lose their only review very early. Kohli is not happy with the decision as he feels, quite some part of the ball did pitch inside leg. The delivery straightens after pitching. India review as an appeal for an LBW has been turned down. Is there an inside edge? Maybe the pitching is an issue. Well, by the first replay, it seems out. Nothing on Ultra Edge. Hawk Eye though shows, it is pitching outside leg.
19.07 IST: Jasprit Bumrah to Hazrat Zazai, FOUR BYES! That is a very difficult take for Dhoni! Bumrah lands this outside off on a length, this one jags back in sharply. Cuts Zazai into half. It bounces just before Dhoni who dives to his right to take it, he also gets some uneven bounce and it goes over him for a boundary.
*Jasprit Bumrah to share the new ball from the other end
19.05 IST: Good start from Shami there. Just one run from the over.
19.00 IST: We are all set for the Afghanistan run chase. Mohammed Shami to start the proceedings for India. It would be interesting to see how the Indian bowling line-up will defend the score. Meanwhile, Afghanistan batsmen will look to get some sort of a partnership at the top.
Indian Innings:
18.37 IST: The pitch is on the slower side and the Indian batsmen failed to come to terms with it. They did manage a few partnerships but surfaces like these demand a set batsman to continue and make a big score. That didn't happen and India are left with a total that Afghanistan will feel is achievable.
18.35 IST: The pitch is on the slower side and the Indian batsmen failed to come to terms with it. They did manage a few partnerships but surfaces like these demand a set batsman to continue and make a big score. That didn't happen and India are left with a total that Afghanistan will feel is achievable.
18.32 IST: Gulbadin Naib to Jasprit Bumrah, A single to end! Full and on middle, this is worked through mid-wicket for one. just the single to end the last over and another top class over this for Afghanistan. Two wickets and 5 runs from it. INDIA END WITH 224 FOR 8!
18.29 IST: Gulbadin Naib to Kedar Jadhav, OUT! Second wicket in the over for Naib! Once again an Indian batter falls to a slower one. This is bowled very slow. Jadhav dances down the track and looks to go over covers but does not get the desired elevation. Noor Ali Zadran takes it on the second attempt.
18.27 IST: Gulbadin Naib to Mohammed Shami, OUT! BOWLED 'EM! You miss, I hit! Slower one and on the stumps, Shami is way too early in the swing, he misses and the leg stump is disturbed. Three runs and a wicket from the first half of the last over.
18.26 IST: Gulbadin Naib to Kedar Jadhav, FIFTY! Sixth fifty for him in ODIs. Rashid has hurt himself! He has saved two for his side with a tremendous effort but these are not god signs for Khan. Jadhav comes down track and he gets a full toss. He smashes it wide of long on. Rashid runs there and then dives with his right hand stretched out. The ball lands just in front of him and he manages to stop it. The physio is out though to have a loot at Rashid and the leggie now walks off the field. The batsmen take two and Jadhav brings his fifty up.
*Mohammed Shami is the new man in
18.23 IST: Aftab Alam to Hardik Pandya, OUT! Another wicket for Afghanistan! The short slower one on middle, Pandya looks to upper cut it but has no pace to work with. It takes a feather and goes into the gloves of the keeper. Afghanistan have a realistic chance of restricting India under 230 now.
*Aftab to bowl the penultimate over.
18.12 IST: Rashid Khan to Kedar Jadhav, NOT OUT! Excellent review! That is slipping down leg. The googly again on the pads, Jadhav fails to pick it again. He is late on the flick. The appeal goes up and the umpire raises the finger. Jadhav initially starts walking but then Pandya calls him back and asks him to review. Time for the replays and they show that the ball is going past the leg pole.
18.07 IST: Aftab Alam to Kedar Jadhav, SIX! Just about carries! Brings up the 200 for India in style! On the fuller side and Jadhav takes a few steps down the track, makes it into a half volley and just extends his arms. It goes just over the long on fence.
18.05 IST: Aftab Alam to Kedar Jadhav, FOUR! Too easy! Down the leg side, Jadhav says thank you very much and works it past short fine leg for a boundary. India would want a lot more here.
*Hardik Pandya is the next man in
18.00 IST: Rashid Khan to MS Dhoni, OUT! STUMPED! Dhoni is out of here! Big, big wicket in the context of the game. Rashid Khan gets his first and it is an important one. Dhoni finally decides to take on a spinner, he comes down the track but does not get to the pitch of it. Still swings hard but it turns away. Misses the bat and Ikram makes no mistake behind.
17.59 IST: Rashid Khan to MS Dhoni, Comedy of errors! What happened there? Comical stuff! A run out opportunity goes abegging! No way that should have been missed! Dhoni dances down the track but Rashid bowls it shorter. Dhoni looks to flick but misses to get hit on the pads. The ball rolls on the leg side. Jadhav wants a run and sets off. Dhoni too takes a start but then bails out. Jadhav has to return from the point of no return. Rashid gets to the ball and gently throws it to the fielder running towards the stumps from cover. However, the fielder there slips. He is lying down flat on the ground and the ball rolls past him. Jadhav makes his way back into the crease. The crowd here is going bonkers.
17.53 IST: Aftab Alam to MS Dhoni, FOUR! One bounce and into the boundary! Full and outside off, this is right in the arc of Dhoni. He lofts it over the mid off fielder and bags a boundary. Second in the over.
17.51 IST: Aftab Alam to Kedar Jadhav, FOUR! Bad ball with fine leg up! Short and on the body, Jadhav helps it on its way, over that fielder and into the fence. 6 from the first two balls.
*Aftab Alam is back on to bowl his fast-medium balls.
17.48 IST: Just two runs off the over...again another cheap over. This is excellent bowling from the Afghanistan spinners.
*Mujeeb Ur Rahman is back on for Afghanistan. He has so far bowled 8 overs for 22 runs and taken one wicket.
*Powerplay 3 starts! No more than 5 fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle till the end of the innings. India would hope their finisher finishes off the innings in style.
17.40 IST: Gulbadin Naib to MS Dhoni, FOUR! Poor, poor ball at that pace! It is halfway down the track, it just won't trouble Dhoni. He goes back and smashes it through backward square leg and it races to the fence. Second boundary conceded in this spell by Naib.
*Runs are not easy to get and it is increasingly looking likely that 250 will be a good score on this track. However, with just 66 balls left, reaching that landmark will also need some smashing.
17.29 IST: Gulbadin Naib to MS Dhoni, FOUR! Hammered! Welcome back into the attack Naib. A hit-me ball to begin with. Short and it is the slower one outside off, Dhoni waits for it and then clobbers it through covers for one.
*Gulbadin Naib is into the attack
17.26 IST: Rashid Khan to Kedar Jadhav, FOUR! India will hope that break the shackles! A welcome boundary for India. Jadhav may have premeditated this stroke. He goes down on one knee early, hits the slog sweep against the turn and bags a boundary. One after 70 balls.
*Rashid Khan to resume after the break.
*DRINKS! This is exceptional bowling by the Afghan spinners. They have not let the famed Indian batting off the hook and going has been extremely slow for the Men in Blue, especially after the fall of Virat Kohli. This doesn't look like a 300 pitch and the Asian giants would have gauged it by now. 14 overs left. Can they add another 100 runs or so to make it difficult for Afghanistan?
15.20 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to MS Dhoni, An appeal but not given! Afghanistan wanted to review it but there are no reviews available. Mujeeb bowls this down the leg side, Dhoni looks to flick. It goes off something to the keeper.
*Mujeeb Ur Rahman back on for Afghanistan. He has been a standout bowler for the Afghans today
15.03 IST: Rahmat Shah to Kedar Jadhav, BEATEN! That has turned square! Lands it on off and spins away sharply. Jadhav looks to defend but gets beaten.
* Jadhav replaces his Kohli in the middle.
16.59 IST: Mohammad Nabi to Virat Kohli, OUT! Virat Kohli is dismissed. Mohammad Nabi has hit the jackpot with this prized scalp. He delivers a short ball around off, too close to cut but the Indian skipper still goes for it. He flashes his bat hard but only to edge it down towards short third man.
16.54 IST: Rahmat Shah to MS Dhoni, Flighted and on off, Dhoni hits it towards cover where the fielder dives to his right and makes a half-stop. He parries it towards the bowler and MS has to backtrack.
16.50 IST: Rashid Khan to MS Dhoni, 5 dots in a row to end the over! Just the one from it. This is floated up on off, it is the googly, Dhoni looks to hit it against the spin but it goes off the inner half towards mid on.
*MS Dhoni is the new man in
16.44 IST: Rahmat Shah to Vijay Shankar, OUT! Umpire's call and Vijay Shankar is out of here! He can't make use of the start he got. A good decision in the end by Aleem Dar. The idea to continue with Shah has paid off. He lands this around the leg stump and gets it to straighten. Shankar looks to sweep but misses to get hit on the pads. The umpire has his finger up immediately as the bowler appeals. Shankar reviews after a chat with his partner. Replays roll in and they show the ball to be clipping the leg pole.
16.42 IST: Rashid Khan to Virat Kohli, FOUR! The last ball spoils the over! This is down the leg side and it is short, easy pickings for a batsman of Kohli's caliber. He whips it through backward square leg and the ball races to the fence.
16.37 IST: Rahmat Shah to Vijay Shankar, FOUR! Lovely shot! Shankar does play that shot well. Shah floats it a little too full outside off, Shankar stays leg side of the ball and lofts it over covers for a boundary. Alos, the 50-run stand is up and this one is a good one for India. It has come up in good pace. Needs to continue though.
16.30 IST: Rahmat Shah to Vijay Shankar, FOUR! Another leggie is welcomed into the attack with a boundary! Tossed up ball landing full outside off, Vijay gets on the front foot and drills his drive through extra cover. Nabi moves across to his left from long off, puts in a dive but fails to stop it cleanly. Ends up pushing it towards the rope.
*Rahmat Shah to bowl his part-time leg spin
16.26 IST: Rashid Khan to Virat Kohli, FIFTY! Third consecutive fifty for him in this World Cup and 52nd fifty in ODIs. Once again the skipper leading from the front. He gets there by whipping this full ball down to long on and takes one. He would be eying his first ton in this World Cup.
16.20 IST: Rashid Khan to Vijay Shankar, NOT OUT! Afghanistan have reviewed! An appeal for an LBW has been turned down. Shankar is the man in question. Looks a little high also, there could be an inside edge. A big inside edge there! Afghanistan lose their review. Rashid bowls the googly outside off, it spins back in. Shankar does not pick it. He looks to jam it out in the end. It seems to have taken an inside edge onto the pads.
16.18 IST: Rashid Khan to Virat Kohli, FOUR! Not the Rashid would have wanted, especially after his previous game. He serves a half volley outside off, Kohli caresses it through covers, no chance for the long off fielder too. Boundary to welcome Rashid into the attack.
*Rashid Khan has been introduced into the attack finally
*Mohammad Nabi to continue after the break
*DRINKS! A watchful India are going on decently at the moment. Two wickets have not hampered them much but they would like to get a big partnership here. Virat Kohli has looked in sublime touch while Vijay Shankar has just come out and would like to make this opportunity count. The pitch has been on the slower side and the spinners have fared decently so far. With the spin king, Rashid Khan, yet to bowl, he will be a different challenge altogether for the Men in Blue. The middle phase will be critical for both teams.
16.05 IST: Another good over Nabi here. Just 2 runs from it. It has slowed down for India and it remains to be seen what Kohli's strategy is from here.
*Vijay Shankar is the next man in
15.57 IST: Mohammad Nabi to KL Rahul, OUT! Nabi strikes! Rahul looks to innovate but it does not come off. Such shots are wonderful when they come off but ugly when they don't. Rahul looks to play the reverse sweep but Nabi bowls it slower and gets some extra bounce on it. The ball goes off the top edge and it balloons to the fielder at short third man. Zazai there takes a dolly. A much-needed wicket for Afghanistan as the two were looking good and the partnership was starting to look threatening.
*Mohammad Nabi comes on to bowl now.
15.42 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to Virat Kohli, FOUR! Poor ball and it spoils the over completely! A full toss down the leg side, Kohli flicks it fine and it races to the fine leg fence.
*Powerplay 2 begins! No more than 4 fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle till the 40th over.
15.31 IST: Aftab Alam to Virat Kohli, FOUR! Now through the off side! Consecutive boundaries! This time there is width offered outside off, Kohli punches it off the back foot, finds the gap through cover-point and it races away.
15.30 IST: Aftab Alam to Virat Kohli, FOUR! Poor ball and put away! Alam drifts it on the pads, Kohli is too strong over there, he flicks it behind square and the ball races away to the fence.
15.21 IST: Aftab Alam to KL Rahul, FOUR! LUCKY KL! It goes between the keeper and the fielder at second slip! FOUR! They just moved him to second slip and they would now be ruining on that move. This lands around off and then straightens. Rahul ends up playing inside the line, the ball goes off the outside edge and through the vacant first slip region for a boundary
15.19 IST: Aftab Alam to KL Rahul, FOUR! First boundary for India. A lovely shot by Rahul. Back of a length ball on off, Rahul stands tall and guides it through cover-point. It is in the gap and once it beats the fielder in the ring, it is going to race away.
15.18 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to Virat Kohli, Shorter and around off, Kohli looks to cut but due to the slowness of the wicket, he chops it to point. End of a successful over for Afghanistan.
* Virat Kohli is the number 3 batsman for India.
15.15 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to Rohit Sharma, OUT! TIMBER! Mujeeb strikes! The tight bowling early on has paid dividends. Huge wicket this as Rohit was in top form in this World Cup. An absolute peach to get rid of him.
15.11 IST: Aftab Alam to KL Rahul, Good line and length by the pacer too! He lands it around off, offering no room to the batsman, Rahul goes back and defends it onto the ground.
15.10 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to KL Rahul, In the air... but just wide! First sign of aggression there by Rahul. He makes room and looks to go over cover. The ball though sticks in the surface. Goes off the inner half uppishly but wide of mid-wicket and down to long on for one.
15.09 IST: Aftab Alam to KL Rahul, Gets this one to tail back in just a little, the line is a little too straight though. Rahul works it through mid-wicket and takes one. A good start by Alam as well.
15.06 IST: Aftab Alam to KL Rahul, This time gets the timing right! Goes back to this shortish ball outside off and strokes it through cover-point. The batters take two.
* Aftab Alam to bowl from the other end with the second new ball.
15.03 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to Rohit Sharma, A dot to end! This is a slider and it is on the pads, Rohit looks to play it with a closed faced bat but closes it too early. A soft leading edge is induced towards point.
15.02 IST: Mujeeb Ur Rahman to KL Rahul, Starts off with a flatter ball just outside off, Rahul pushes it back to the bowler.
* Time to get underway! The Afghans get into a huddle before spreading on the field. Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul now cross the boundary line to open the batting for India. Afghanistan, as expected, are beginning with the spin of Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Rahul to face first ball. All in readiness, here we go...
14.54 IST: The players are out for the national anthems.
Playing XIs:
Afghanistan (Playing XI): Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib(c), Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Ali Khil(w), Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan, Aftab Alam, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
India (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni(w), Hardik Pandya, Kedar Jadhav, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
14.35 IST: TOSS! India win the toss and choose to bat first.
14.22 IST: We all know what happened the last time India and Afghanistan met in an ODI, don't we? An Asia Cup thriller which ended in a tie! Also, MS Dhoni captained that game. What do you think will happen this time around?
14.12 IST: Watch Cricket ki Baat with Samip Rajguru, as India TV previews the game between India and Afghanistan here.
13.07 IST: Hello and welcome to the live blog for India's fifth game of the 2019 World Cup against Afghanistan! We'll be providing all the updates on the game, as and when they come.
Brief Preview: India's star-studded line-up could well break a few batting records when they face the tournament's favourite whipping boys Afghanistan in what threatens to be another lopsided contest at the ICC World Cup, on Saturday. One of the title contenders, India's match against Afghanistan could well be a glorified net session in which they would like to put up a resounding performance that not only eases their passage to the semi-final but also ensures a good net run-rate. (FULL PREVIEW)
