KABUL (SW): Afghanistan on Thursday thrashed Papua New Guinea (PNG) by four wickets to secure a place for the T20 Cricket World Cup to be played in India next year.
Batting first, PNG set a modest target of 127 for the Afghan squad. The Afghans achieved it in the 19th over. Former captain Nawruz Mangal played important role in Afghanistan’s victory.
He scored unbeaten 65 and was declared the man of the match. “I am happy today our team has made it to the World Cup”, he said.
Afghanistan now go to the World Twenty20 for the fourth consecutive time. In its five qualifying rounds, Afghanistan defeated strong Scotish and the UAE teams but lost to Hong Kong and Oman. Today's match was a must win to secure a place in the T20WC.
ENDS
