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Afghanistan secured a remarkable 69-run victory over the defending champions, England, in Match 13 of the ongoing ICC Cricket ODI World Cup 2023. This gripping contest unfolded on Sunday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
Afghanistan set a challenging target of 285 runs for England to chase. However, the English side struggled to keep up and were eventually bowled out for a mere 215 runs. Aside from Harry Brook, who contributed 66 runs, none of the other English batters managed to put up a noteworthy performance, leaving their team at a significant disadvantage.
The Jos Buttler-led side has only managed to win a single match out of the three they’ve played so far in the tournament. The unexpected loss to Afghanistan has certainly shaken up the cricket world and added an element of unpredictability to the ongoing World Cup.
Michael Vaughan’s cryptic Tweet
After England’s surprising defeat to Afghanistan, former cricketer Michael Vaughan displayed unwavering faith in the English side. He went on to X (formerly Twitter) to predict that England would overcome their ups and downs and make it to the tournament’s semi-finals.
“England in the World Cup semis .. 🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌” Vaughan Wrote.
England in the World Cup semis .. 🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) October 15, 2023
Virender Sehwag’s epic reply to Vaughan
Virender Sehwag, the renowned Indian batting maestro, didn’t miss the opportunity to respond to Vaughan’s tweet. The Najafgarh-born cricketer cheekily retorted to Vaughan’s statement by highlighting that England have reached the knockout stage just once in their past eight attempts. He pointed out that England failed to make it to the semi-finals in 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2023 edition is going on.
“Not in 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2023. Just one in 8 attempts,” Sehwag wrote in his tweet.
Not in 1996 , 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2023 .
Just one in 8 attempts. https://t.co/VeB0rBZt8O— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) October 16, 2023
Also READ: World Cup 2023 – Overjoyed Wazhma Ayoubi expresses gratitude for Indian crowd after Afghanistan’s historic win over England
Wasim Jaffer’s funny reply to Vaughan
Adding to the light-hearted banter, another former Indian cricketer, Wasim Jaffer, chimed in with a humorous take on Vaughan’s reaction. The left-handed batter shared a comical two-second meme with a caption implying that he hopes Vaughan is fine.
“Hope you’re ok @MichaelVaughan #ENGvAFG #CWC23” Jaffer mentioned in his tweet.
Hope you're ok @MichaelVaughan #ENGvAFG #CWC23 pic.twitter.com/xm2m7oTF1r
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) October 15, 2023