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ODI world cup 2023 Cricket

'Chalo ab finals m milte hai SA walo' - Fans react as South Africa ends 2023 World Cup group stage with 5-wicket win over Afghanistan

Chasing a modest target of 245 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, South Africa was made to sweat a bit harder by the Afghan bowlers.

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Mathew K
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SA vs AFG (Source: Twitter)

SA vs AFG (Source: Twitter)

South Africa ended their group stage of the 2023 ODI World Cup with a five-wicket win in Ahmedabad on Friday. That's the end of the road for Afghanistan in the 2023 ODI World Cup. But they will leave India with their heads held high, an outstanding campaign by them in this edition. Beating England and Pakistan and coming close to victory against Australia and today against South Africa is commendable. Finishing with 8 points in fifth position, Afghanistan have proved that they are no longer 'minnows'.

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Chasing a modest target of 245 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, South Africa was made to sweat a bit harder by the Afghan bowlers. Their openers Quinton de Kock and Temba Bavuma got off to a great start - 57/0 in the first powerplay - but were dismissed in quick succession. Rassie van der Dussen and Aiden Markram then stitched a fifty partnership but Rashid Khan broke the stand and he also cleaned up the dangerous Heinrich Klaasen in the same spell. 

Mohammad Nabi got his second wicket by removing David Miller to put Afghanistan in the driver's seat. But van der Dussen kept his composure and made sure the scoreboard ticked along with Andile Phehlukwayo. The latter hit boundaries for fun against pacer Naveen-ul-Haq to wrap up the proceedings with 15 balls to spare. Van der Dussen remained unbeaten on 76 off 95 while Phehlukwayo scored 39* off 37 balls. 

Earlier in the day, after opting to bat first, Afghanistan openers gave them a slow but steady start scoring 41 in 8.1 overs. However, they were soon reduced to 116/6. Azmatullah Omarzai batted brilliantly as he fell short of just 3 runs for a well-deserved century. The 23-year-old ensured that his team posted a respectable total. Gerald Coetzee, who took four wickets, was the pick of the bowlers for the Proteas. 

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Here's how fans reacted to South Africa's win over Afghanistan in 2023 ODI World Cup:

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Afghanistan featured South Africa ODI World Cup 2023