"I don't think I've seen them field as poorly" - Tom Moody blasts Australia for loss against Afghanistan

Former Australian cricketer Tom Moody pointed out the reason why the Mitchell Marsh-led side failed to win the game against Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup 2024. He said that the 2021 champions were poor on the field as they were at their worst.

Australia Cricket Team were at the receiving end of the 21-run thrashing at the hands of the Afghanistan National Cricket Team. The Rashid Khan-led side was magnificent with the bat and ball as they ticked almost every box and made sure that they registered their first-ever win over the opposition.

Afghanistan were asked to bat first and they were off to a magnificent start with the bat. Rahmanullah Gurbaz (60) and Ibrahim Zadran (51) did most of the carnage with the bat at the top as they added 118 runs for the opening partnership, putting Australia under pressure.

They were also helped by the slopiness of Australia on the field as well. They dropped some of the catches but after the opening partnership, they made a staggering comeback. Pat Cummins led the charge as he picked a hat-trick while Adam Zampa bagged two wickets as they restricted Afghanistan to 148/6.

It was a horrible outing for Australia with the bat. They lost wickets right from the start. Travis Head fell for a duck in the first over and after that David Warner and skipper Mitchell Marsh too couldn't make a bigger impact with the bat as they came under pressure.

Glenn Maxwell returned to form with the magnificent 59 and by the the time he was batting, it seemed that he would take the game away from Afghanistan just like he did in the 2023 World Cup. However, the introduction of Gulbadin Naib changed the course of the game. He picked 4 wickets as the Rashid Khan-led side bundled out the opposition for 127 runs to win the game by 21 runs.

Tom Moody admitted that Australia was sloppy with their fielding in the game and that cost them. While speaking to ESPNCricinfo, he explained:

"I don't think I've seen Australia field as poorly as what we saw tonight. They missed a couple of chances. Yes, there are a couple of very difficult chances, but just sloppy with general ground fielding. And to me, it's one thing that Australian cricket had a lot of pride in themselves with their fielding."

They were off the mark in the field tonight - Tom Moody

Tom Moody further pointed out how Australia ars always at the top when in the field. But with their being off the mark on the field was the main reason behind their loss in the game against Afghanistan. He added:

"They normally are the standout when it comes to those 20 overs in the field. But they were off the mark in the field tonight, which was unlike them. And ultimately, it cost them."

To stay alive in the T20 World Cup 2024, Australia will have to win their last game against India. The match will be played in Guyana on Monday (24th June).