Tag: T20 World Cup

  • T20 World Cup: Twitter reacts after India crushed Afghanistan

    T20 World Cup: Twitter reacts after India crushed Afghanistan

    Soon after Indian batting ended in the first half of India vs Afghanistan match of T20 World Cup Super 12 stage, Twitter was flooded with reactions on Afghanistan’s performance.

    Taking to Twitter, many users were disappointed by the bowling figures of the Afghan team. Some tweeted that the match is fixed, while others said that the Indian team paid well to the Afghans.

    Here are a few reactions of the netizens:

    https://twitter.com/Dani_Baloch7/status/1456111258902609920?s=20
    https://twitter.com/Aliraza30010129/status/1456124333206671360?s=20
    https://twitter.com/utpk07/status/1456113150684770306?s=20
    https://twitter.com/Haider0fficial/status/1456112846132101121?s=20

    Many notables took to Twitter to express their displeasure with the Afghan team.

    However, many chided those who believed in such conspiracy theories.

    https://twitter.com/hassan_a_niazi/status/1455939309664489476?s=21

    KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma put together India’s biggest opening stand at T20 World Cups. Hardik Pandya and Rishabh Pant then provided India the finishing kick with a 63-run partnership in the last 3.3 overs. Having put such a high total, India’s bowling was too good for Afghanistan, keeping them to 144, moving into positives on the net-run-rate.

    Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s net-run-rate dropped from 3.1 to 1.481. India has played three matches and their current NRR is 0.073. Their next matches are against Scotland and Namibia.

  • ‘If we win T20 WC, all players will dedicate it to my daughter’: Asif Ali

    ‘If we win T20 WC, all players will dedicate it to my daughter’: Asif Ali

    Pakistan’s hitter Asif Ali has shared that the national players have decided to dedicate T20 World Cup’s victory to his late 18-month-old daughter Noor Fatima.

    Read More – ‘Aik over main 25 bhi kar leinge’: Asif Ali to Shoaib Malik

    According to reports, Asif and his teammates have decided to name T20 World Cup’s victory after his daughter who lost her life while battling cancer.

    “If we manage to win the T20 World Cup, all players will dedicate it to my daughter,” Asif was quoted as saying.

    It must be noted here that Asif led Pakistan to two back-to-back victories against New Zealand and Afghanistan in the ongoing T20 World Cup.

    After beating Namibia on Tuesday, Pakistan became the first team to qualify for the semi-finals of the ongoing mega event. Pakistan’s last match of the Super 12 stage will be against Scotland on November 7.

  • Babar Azam becomes world’s no 1 batter after prolific performance in T20 World Cup

    Babar Azam becomes world’s no 1 batter after prolific performance in T20 World Cup

    Captain of Pakistan cricket team Babar Azam on Wednesday unseated England’s Dawid Malan to become the top-ranked T20I batter in the world according to the latest ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings.

    Babar now sits on top of ICC’s T20I batsman rankings with 834 points and Milan is number 2 with 798 points.

    Two successive half-centuries in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 have helped the batter overtake Malan and grab the number 1 position.

    Babar, who scored 51 against Afghanistan and 70 against Namibia to lead the 2009 champions into the semifinals, is at the top for the sixth time in his career. The 27-year-old had first attained the top position on January 28, 2018. He is presently also ranked No 1 in ODIs.

    Babar’s tally of 834 rating points keeps him 36 points ahead of Dawid Malan but Babar’s career best remains 896 rating points that he achieved after scoring 65 against England at Cardiff on May 5, 2019. Malan had been at the top since November 29 last year.

    Read More – ‘This is for you’: Babar Azam dedicates the win to Pakistani fans

    England’s performances in the tournament too reflect in the rankings, with both their openers Jos Buttler and Jason Roy moving up in the latest weekly update.

    Buttler has gained eight slots to reach a career-best ninth position after smashing his maiden T20I hundred against Sri Lanka while Roy is up five places to 14th.

    Meanwhile, Sri Lankan leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga has topped the bowling charts for the first time in his career after two successive three-wicket hauls against South Africa and England. He replaces South Africa’s Tabraiz Shamsi, who was at the top since April 10 this year.

    The top four bowlers in the rankings are all wrist spinners, with England’s Adil Rashid overtaking Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan to take third place with a career-best 730 rating points. A fast bowler who has made rapid rise is South Africa’s Anrich Nortje, who has gained 18 slots to reach the seventh position.

    At the top of the all-rounders’ table, Mohammad Nabi has caught up with Shakib Al Hasan on 271 rating points. Hasaranga is fourth in this list.

  • VIDEO: Pak cricket team visit Namibian dressing room to congratulate them

    VIDEO: Pak cricket team visit Namibian dressing room to congratulate them

    Pakistani team on Wednesday cheered up the Namibian squad and congratulated them over their journey in the Twenty20 World Cup.

    As a heartwarming gesture, the Men in Green visited the dressing room of Namibia after a comfortable win by the formers in the Super 12 stage clash in Abu Dhabi of the ICC tournament being held in the UAE.

    Pakistan on Tuesday cruised to the semi-finals of the major cricketing event after they sealed a 45-run win against Namibia with confident half-centuries, a brilliant 50-ball 79 not out from Mohammad Rizwan and 49-ball 70 from skipper Babar Azam.

    Namibia lost the match but they continued fighting till the end of the match, disallowing Pakistan to have any walkover. But, a heavy target of 190 proved way too high for them to chase.

    The official Twitter handle of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) posted a video of their cricketers and a team official visiting the Namibian team’s dressing room to applaud their undaunted competitiveness.

    In the video, the Pakistan cricketers, along with an official, can be seen entering the dressing room and bucking up the Namibian players, saying, “Guys, congratulations for qualifying and playing in this World Cup.”

    The Pakistani official told the Namibian team they have done a great job so far by playing brilliant cricket. Pakistani cricketers, including Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Hafeez, Hassan Ali, Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan, were seen interacting with the Namibian players.

    The players of the two teams exchanged smiles and good words, especially Afridi who hugged David Wiese and wished him good luck. Hafeez was seen sharing some useful tips with the Namibian side. David Wiese was earlier also photographed sharing light moments with the Green Shirts, especially Haris Rauf during the match.

    Pakistan have won all four matches so far while Namibia have one win from three matches. They beat Scotland by four wickets but lost to Afghanistan.

    Taking to Twitter, Babar Azam wrote: “A proud moment for Pakistan team for qualifying for the semis; but the job is not done yet.”

    “This is all setting up for more efforts, more focus, more team performances and more determination. One game at a time, In shaa’Allah,” he added.

  • Pakistani Virushka fans react after Vamika’s rape threat by Indian extremists

    Pakistani Virushka fans react after Vamika’s rape threat by Indian extremists

    Every time the Indian cricket team loses a match, the players of the team are subjected to harsh criticism. This time the fans who claim to love the sport have gone one step ahead, as now the family members of the players are being targeted.

    It is gruesome to even read the tweet by now-deleted account @Criccrazyygirl issuing a rape threat to a nine-month-old Vamika Kohli, daughter of Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma and Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli. The identity of the person who tweeted the rape threat is yet to be verified, the screenshot has been amplified several times by right-leaning handles.

    Pakistani netizens reacted to this horrendous attack on a toddler, who has nothing to do with India losing their matches. We have collected a few reactions who are saying that as a Pakistan, We Stand With Virat Kohli, have a look:

    https://twitter.com/janiya6312/status/1455346065176154114?s=20
    https://twitter.com/AshanGill2/status/1455265494987157519?s=20

    The barbaric tweet called for the toddler’s photo to be revealed while issuing a rape threat. As on November 1, the handle was deleted from Twitter.

    The tweet came at a time when captain Kohli is facing online attacks for speaking in support of his Muslim teammate Mohammad Shami, who was attacked online after the cricket team faced a 10-wicket defeat against Pakistan in the ongoing Men’s T20 World Cup.

    Shami was subjected to vicious online trolling and abuse on Instagram and Twitter soon after the match between the two teams, in which he conceded 43 runs in 3.5 overs, ended.

  • Shahid Afridi says India needs a ‘miracle’ to qualify for T20 World Cup semi-final

    Shahid Afridi says India needs a ‘miracle’ to qualify for T20 World Cup semi-final

    Former Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi has said that India have an outside chance of qualifying for the semis but with how they have played their two big games in the event, it would be nothing but a miracle to see them qualify.

    The former captain’s statement came after New Zealand crushed India by eight wickets on Sunday.

    Azhar Ali and Shoaib Akhtar also took to Twitter to express their displeasure on the performance of India.

    A timid India could only manage a below-par 110 for 7 in their crucial match and then saw New Zealand chase down the target of 111 with 33 balls to spare.

    Trent Boult took three wickets, while Ish Sodhi grabbed two crucial wickets of Indian skipper Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. He also bagged Player of the Match award for his classic performance with the ball.

    India is still mathematically alive in this tournament but even three crushing wins against Afghanistan, Scotland and Namibia would not guarantee qualification for the semi-finals.

    Meanwhile, Pakistan is on the top of the table in Group 2 with six points, Afghanistan stands second with four points, beating India with a big margin, the Black Caps are on third position with 2 points in their bucket.

    India will play Afghanistan on Wednesday in their next match of the Super 12 stage.

  • ‘Bunch of spineless people’: Virat Kohli slams trolls who abused Shami

    ‘Bunch of spineless people’: Virat Kohli slams trolls who abused Shami

    Indian skipper Virat Kohli lashed out on Saturday at the “spineless people” who abused pacer Mohammad Shami on social media after Pakistan defeated India on Sunday, in their first clash in the T20 World Cup.

    “There’s a good reason why we are playing on the field and not some bunch of spineless people on social media that have no courage to actually speak to any individual in person,” said Kohli while talking to reporters in a presser.

    Kohli said that social media trolls were “literally the lowest level of human potential that one can operate at.”

    He further said: “Attacking someone over their religion is the most, I would say, pathetic thing that a human being can do.”

    The 32-year-old said that online abuse had become a “source of entertainment in today’s world” and that he was confident the episode would not affect the dressing room atmosphere.

    “We stand by him fully. We are backing him 200 per cent. Our brotherhood, our friendship within the team, nothing can be shaken,” he added.

    The Indian team as well as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had stayed silent after the incident.

    However, several former Indian players like Irfan Pathan, Virendar Sehwag and others had spoke against the abuse on social media.

    Pakistan’s wicketkeeper-batter Mohammed Rizwan also extended his support to Shami on social media.

    Team India lost the match by 10 wickets. Babar Azam and Rizwan’s prolific innings lead Pakistan to the record-breaking victory at the Dubai International Stadium.

  • ‘Aik over main 25 bhi kar leinge’: Asif Ali to Shoaib Malik

    ‘Aik over main 25 bhi kar leinge’: Asif Ali to Shoaib Malik

    Asif Ali clinched the match for Pakistan, beating Afghanistan with five wickets.

    At the post-match ceremony Asif said: “The boundary was small from this end so I told Shoaib Malik that I’d go for it this over. Thank God we pulled it off.”

    He further said: “I look at the situation and what it demands and which bowler has overs remaining, and the field setting.”

    “I told Shoaib [Malik] that Naveen was bowling well, and from this end I could even score 25 in an over. So I planned for it,” he concluded.

    “The bowlers bowled brilliantly at the start, but I think we gave 10-15 runs too many away,” said Babar at the post-match ceremony.

    “We didn’t quite use the Powerplay as well as we hoped but Asif and Shoaib Malik at the death were brilliant. The way Asif has played many innings at the PSL, I was very confident he’d get us out of any trouble we find ourselves in,” he added.

    Babar also said: “I wanted to stay till the end but got out, unfortunately. So credit to Asif Ali.”

    Pakistan needed 24 runs in the last two overs. Hitting four sixes in the 19th over, Asif sealed the deal for Pakistan.

    Many notables, cricketers and Prime Minister Imran Khan took to Twitter to congratulate Pakistan and thank Asif for the win. Here are a few Tweets:

    https://twitter.com/76Shadabkhan/status/1454144930318852096?t=tOzd5GoPIMRudKDQzXldbA&s=19

    While former Chief Minister of Punjab Shehbaz Sharif wants to make a flyover in Asif Ali’s name.

    England’s all-rounder Ben Stokes took to Twitter and wrote: “Remember the name @AasifAli2018.”

    Meanwhile, the power hitter took to Twitter and wrote: “Aur koi hukam Pakistan? Shukriya @isbunited aur woh sub log jinho ne mere per belief rakha mere mushkil waqt mai. #PakistanZindabad.”

  • ‘Will take the knee’: Quinton de Kock apologises after ignoring team directives

    ‘Will take the knee’: Quinton de Kock apologises after ignoring team directives

    South African wicket-keeper batter Quinton de Kock has apologised to his teammates and fans for the “hurt, confusion, and anger” he caused by refusing to follow a CSA directive to take the knee at the T20 World Cup and sitting out the game against the West Indies, reported ESPN Cricinfo.

    In a statement released on Thursday morning, de Kock explained that his decision not to take the knee on Tuesday was a response to feeling “like my rights were taken away when I was told what we had to do in the way that we were told” by the CSA board. However, after an “emotional” conversation between the board and the players last night, he has a “better understanding of their intentions” and “will love nothing more than to play cricket for my country again”.

    It means de Kock has made himself available for selection for the rest of the tournament, which for South Africa, resumes on Saturday against Sri Lanka.

    He recognised that he has dominated the cricket conversation in the last 48 hours, although he said that was unintentional. “I never ever wanted to make this a Quinton issue,” de Kock’s statement read. “I understand the importance of standing against racism, and I also understand the responsibility of us as players to set an example. If me taking a knee helps to educate others, and makes the lives of others better, I am more than happy to do so.”

    De Kock was the only player in the South African squad who had previously chosen not to make any gesture in support of anti-racism and said that that was because he “didn’t understand why I had to prove it (his feelings on antiracism) with a gesture, when I live and learn and love people from all walks of life every day,” he said.