Afghanistan’s early World Cup momentum was halted as individual brilliance once again failed to translate into a complete team performance against New Zealand.
India | By Somaya Hashemi
Afghanistan opened their ICC World Cup campaign with a five-wicket defeat to New Zealand, despite a fighting half-century from Gulbadin Naib in the group-stage encounter.
Batting first, Afghanistan relied heavily on Naib, who top-scored with 63 runs, anchoring the innings during a period of mounting pressure. However, the lack of sustained partnerships and lower-order support prevented the team from posting a challenging total.
New Zealand’s bowlers maintained discipline through the middle overs, keeping the run rate in check and forcing Afghanistan into conservative shot selection. In response, the New Zealand batting lineup executed a controlled chase, reaching the target with five wickets to spare.
“The intent was there, but we couldn’t capitalize at key moments,” Afghanistan’s performance reflected a recurring pattern seen in previous major tournaments, where promising starts have not been fully converted into match-winning totals.
The defeat stands in contrast to Afghanistan’s strong pre-tournament form. In warm-up matches, the national side produced dominant performances, defeating Scotland by 61 runs and West Indies by 23 runs, results that had raised expectations ahead of the World Cup opener.
With several group-stage matches still remaining, Afghanistan will now face pressure to address batting depth and composure under high-stakes conditions as they look to revive their World Cup campaign.