Aakash Chopra has commended Afghanistan’s performance as they approach their 2023 World Cup match against Australia. He believes they’ve been the standout team of the tournament to date.
Australia and Afghanistan will compete in a preliminary round at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The date? Tuesday, November 7. The Aussies are predicted to advance to the semi-finals. Yet, if Afghanistan wins their last two group games, they’ll secure a spot in the knockout rounds.
In a video previewing the game on his YouTube site, Aakash Chopra put Afghanistan on a pedestal, saying:
“Afghanistan have a lot to play for, all to play for. They are playing extremely well. In my opinion, they are the team of the tournament thus far, the way they have played. They have won while chasing and done well while setting targets as well.”
Aakash Chopra
Hashmatullah Shahidi and company have created a few significant upsets in the competition, according to the former India opener. He went on to say:
“They have been able to knock down big-big teams. They knocked down Pakistan and England. They defeated Sri Lanka as though they had come for timepass. They also said tata bye-bye to the Netherlands. So. it’s a very decent team.”
Aakash Chopra
Afghanistan didn’t win their initial couple of games against Bangladesh and India in the tournament. However, they managed to claim four victories in the posterior five matches. Their sole defeat during this period came from New Zealand.
Aakash Chopra’s Advice to Afghanistan: Play Noor Ahmad to Stop Australia with Spin
Afghanistan should use Noor Ahmad as a fourth spinner, according to Aakash Chopra. He reasoned as follows:
“I would say you can play Noor Ahmad because you can only stop Australia with spin but the scales are tilted towards Australia. Australia also know that qualification is on the line.”
Aakash Chopra
The cricketer-turned-commentator stated that if Australia wins on Tuesday, they would be able to sleep easily. He elaborated:
“They can finish either second or third, neither can they go to No. 1 nor will they finish at No. 4. So if they win this match, they can keep the qualification aside and relax a little. If they win this match, a ‘Q’ will be written in front of their name.”
Aakash Chopra
While acknowledging that everyone has high hopes for Afghanistan, Chopra admitted that the Wankhede surface will not help their spinners and that Australia is the superior squad. Even if they get to bat first on a normally chase-friendly pitch, he expects Pat Cummins and company to set a 300-plus target.