Chennai: New Zealand continued their dominant run in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 as they crushed Afghanistan by 149 runs in their third match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday.
The Kiwis, who had earlier defeated England and Bangladesh, maintained their top spot in the points table with six points and a superior net run rate.
Afghanistan, who are yet to open their account in the tournament, won the toss and opted to field first, hoping to exploit the early morning conditions. However, their decision backfired as New Zealand’s openers Martin Guptill and Devon Conway put on a solid 113-run stand in 19.4 overs.
Here is the Point table:
| TEAMS | M | W | L | T | N/R | PT | NRR | Series Form | Next | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1.923 | W W W W | vs IND | 1141/179.1 | 889/200.0 |
| India | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1.821 | W W W | vs BAN | 666/106.5 | 662/150.0 |
| South Africa | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1.385 | L W W | vs ENG | 946/143.0 | 748/143.0 |
| Pakistan | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -0.137 | L W W | vs AUS | 822/148.2 | 741/130.3 |
| England | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -0.084 | L W L | vs SA | 861/150.0 | 794/136.2 |
| Bangladesh | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -0.699 | L L W | vs IND | 630/134.4 | 768/142.5 |
| Australia | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -0.734 | W L L | vs PAK | 591/135.2 | 721/141.2 |
| Netherlands | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -0.993 | W L L | vs SL | ||
| Afghanistan | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Sri Lanka | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Guptill was the first to depart for a well-made 63 off 61 balls, which included seven fours and two sixes. Conway then carried on his sublime form and reached his second century of the tournament in 99 balls. He was eventually dismissed for 150 off 121 balls, hitting 14 fours and four sixes.
Afghanistan’s bowlers struggled to contain the flow of runs as New Zealand’s middle-order batsmen Glenn Phillips (71 off 80 balls) and Tom Latham (32 off 28 balls) added some quick runs in the final overs. New Zealand finished with a formidable total of 288 for 6 in 50 overs.
Afghanistan’s chase never got going as they lost wickets at regular intervals. None of their batsmen could cross the 30-run mark as they were bowled out for a paltry 139 in 34.4 overs. New Zealand’s pacers Trent Boult and Kyle Jamieson shared seven wickets between them, while spinner Mitchell Santner chipped in with two wickets.
Phillips was adjudged the player of the match for his all-round performance. He also bowled three overs of off-spin and conceded only 13 runs.
New Zealand will next face Pakistan on October 23 in Hyderabad, while Afghanistan will take on India on October 25 in Chennai.
