Glenn Maxwell powers Australia to beat Afghanistan

• Maxwell confused the Afghan bowlers and hit them all over the park.
• Became the first player to score a WC double ton batting at number 5 or lower.
• Afghanistan need to beat South Africa to qualify for the knockout stage.

Glenn Maxwell on Tuesday stunned Afghanistan as Australia inflicted a three-wicket defeat in the opener in a thrilling group match of the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in Mumbai, India.

The Australian batsman played one of the greatest innings in World Cup history, scoring a stunning unbeaten double century.

Maxwell, 35, terrorized Afghanistan’s bowlers and hit them all over the park as, along with skipper Pat Cummins, they grabbed victory from the jaws of defeat.

The 35-year-old came into bat when his side were 49-4 after Josh English had just lost his wicket for a golden duck. However, Maxwell got life on two separate occasions as he was bowled by Hasmatullah Shahidi and Mujib ur Rehman.

Afghanistan’s bowlers caused the Australian batsmen all sorts of problems in the first overs and were on their way to a certain victory. However, Maxwell single-handedly became the cause of their pain as the devastating right-handed batsman gave no options or chances to Shahidi’s men.

Maxwell was greatly supported by Cummins who played a calm and logical knock, scoring 12 runs in 68 balls.

The 35-year-old also suffered from cramps and, in the final overs, was unable to run while playing shots without moving his legs.

Glenn Maxwell became the first player to score 200 in a chase in ODIs and also the first player to score 2 centuries in a WC edition batting at No.5 or lower.

Going first, Ibrahim Zadran was the standout player as he became the first Afghan to score a century in World Cup history.

While the other Afghan batsmen failed to score, it was Zandran who came in first and stayed till the end, helping his team to a good total.

Rashid Khan supported Zadran significantly during the last five overs as the allrounder played a quick knock, scoring 35 off just 18 deliveries with two fours and three sixes.

Rahmat Shah (30), skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (26) and Azmatullah Omarzai (22) were the other contributors to the winning side.

No Australian player except Josh Hazlewood lived up to expectations as the right-arm pacer conceded just 39 runs in nine overs and also took two important wickets.

Afghanistan will now play another important and necessary match against South Africa on November 9.

Meanwhile, Australia will face Bangladesh on November 11 in their final group match.