PremiumAUS vs AFG: If Afghanistan win against Australia, how will it impact ODI World Cup 2023 points table?
Afghanistan's path to the ODI World Cup 2023 semifinals looks promising as they have secured victories against England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and the Netherlands.
Last Updated: 07.40 PM, Nov 07, 2023
Afghanistan is looking good in the 2nd innings after setting a target of 291 runs against Australia and already taking four wickets in Match 39 of the ICC Men's ODI World Cup 2023 in Mumbai. Chasing down this total at Wankhede, where the highest successful chase in ODIs is 281 by New Zealand against India in 2017, proves to be a challenging task for the Aussies.
As they began their chase, the Australian team struggled to find their rhythm with the bat. Travis Head was dismissed for a duck, while Mitchell Marsh contributed 24 runs before being sent back. David Warner fell for 18, and Josh Inglis was also dismissed without scoring a run. After 13 overs and four wickets down, the Aussies have posted 69 runs and Marnus Labuschagne (14*) and Glenn Maxwell (11*) will need to guide their team to victory.
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With India and South Africa already securing their spots in the semifinals, the battle for the last two positions has intensified, with New Zealand, Pakistan, and Afghanistan all currently tied with eight points each.
What happens if Afghanistan beats Australia?
If Afghanistan secures a victory, they will climb to 10 points, surpassing both New Zealand and Pakistan to enter the top four. Australia will maintain their third position, having the same number of points after eight games. However, Australia will maintain the top spot due to their superior net run rate.
Afghanistan will also need to win their final league game against South Africa on November 10 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. They will hope for New Zealand (against Sri Lanka) and Pakistan (against England) to lose their respective final matches to help their cause.
Even if Australia loses to Afghanistan, they must win their final game against Bangladesh to secure a spot in the last four. Australia needs just one victory in their remaining two contests to advance to the semifinals.