NZ vs AFG: Hashmatullah Shahidi Laments Poor Fielding After Loss To New Zealand

The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led Afghanistan National Cricket Team lost the 16th match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 against the Tom Latham-led New Zealand National Cricket Team at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai on Wednesday, October 18.

The Afghans faced a hammering of 149 runs against the Kiwis as they were outplayed in all three departments of the game. They also had an awful day on the field as they dropped five catches, including a really tough chance, and missed a stumping.

During the post-match presentation ceremony, Hashmatullah Shahidi said that his side was poor field and they dropped easy catches. He said:

“At this level, you have to take those catches. The fielding was poor. We were a bit down because of that.”

We couldn’t stop the set batters – Hashmatullah Shahidi

Shahidi added that they gave away a lot of runs in the last few overs and were unable to stop the New Zealand batters. He said:

“Last six overs, a lot of runs were scored by the NZ team. Before the 40th over, we dropped a couple of catches. We couldn’t stop the set batters. We tried but failed.”

Hashmatullah Shahidi said that they bowled well but the bowlers were not supported well by the fielders. The Afghanistan skipper was hopeful of making a strong comeback after facing a defeat against New Zealand.

“The toss I can say, you can’t judge 100 percent when it comes to the pitch. The pitch was slow. We bowled well but the fielding was a concern for us. It will hurt us. We have more games to come. We will talk where we can improve and come back stronger in the next game,” Hashmatullah Shahidi said.

After inviting New Zealand to bat first, Afghanistan conceded 288 runs in 50 overs and while chasing the target they got all out for 139 in 34.4 overs.