ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Australia vs Afghanistan, 39th Match

Pat Cummins Australia captain: Ridiculous. Don't know how to describe it. Great win! This has to be the greatest thing ever. One of those days people will say yes, I was in the stadium for this game. He was great, he was cool. He always had a plan. Even from 200 down to win the game like that was really special. We had two NSW players line up, Zampa was on and off three times, but Maxi wanted to be there. It is important to remember that you can win from anywhere. Real's belief in the team and we're in the semi-finals now, that's great. (Can they do better) Don't think it's time and space, I'm going to give it a break. I think the toss is a bit tricky here, the first 20 overs are crucial. Obviously there are things we could have done better.

Hashmatullah Shahidi Afghanistan captain: Very disappointed. Cricket is a fun game, it was incredible for us. We were in the game, our bowlers started very well and squandered chances. After that, Maxwell doesn't stop, he plays any kind of shot and I can give him credit. I think the dropped catches were the key, after that Maxwell played really well. Our bowlers tried their best but he didn't give us any chance. Proud of the team, but we will be disappointed tonight. We didn't think it would be like this, part of the game. This is cricket. We will try to come back strong against South Africa. He must be proud of himself, I am also proud that he is the first Afghan to score a WC century.
Glenn Maxwell Player of the Match - It was very hot fielding today, I didn't exercise much in the heat, it caught me today. I wanted to stay back and get some movement (in my legs). Not too much (when asked about the plan at 92/7), just stick to the batting plan as much as possible, for me, still stay positive, still watch my shots, that lbw, it was going right up (stumps), maybe It made me more active. Hints of swing and nip (off the surface), as it happens here under lights, they bowled beautifully to exploit it. It would have been a chance knock, but I had my chance, and I can be proud to have made the most of it tonight. Amazingly, after the first two games, people quickly wrote our name down. The belief was always there (as a team), after today it would have increased a bit more.

How will I explain to my future children that Australia managed to chase down 292 runs after being 91/7 at one point, when one player in the partnership scored 12 off 68 balls and the other literally carried the weight of his team with bad backs? The day began with Ibrahim Zadran's maiden World Cup century for the Afghans, while Shahidi, Rahmat and Omarzai contributed. Rashid added a late dash to give Afghanistan a formidable target. In reply, Travis Head was dismissed for nil and Marsh was trapped lbw by Naveen. Omarzai then took two for two to leave Australia at 49/4. Maxwell survived the scare when he came to tackle the hat-trick ball. Then Shahidi gave him a life who couldn't reach an errant shot and an lbw review went in his favor as Noor Ahmed expected the ball to go over the stumps. The most fortunate break though came when Mujeeb dropped a dolly at short fine. The way the Afghan spinner was dropped. Realizing that it was his day and nothing to lose, Maxwell went hammer and tongs at the Afghan bowlers. Just like Midas had the golden touch, Maxi had the golden bat today as everything he hit was either for a four or over the boundary rope. Maxwell was battling fatigue, seizures, a bad back and the Afghan invasion. At one point he was playing without any footwork like that animated stick cricket character. But still the Afghan bowlers had no answer. In the end, Wankhede chased the maximum target with more than 3 overs to spare. And this summary cannot be complete without a mention of Pat Cummins who was unbeaten on 12 off 68 balls. Now on to the presentation…