New Delhi: ICC World Cup 2023 has completed its 34th match on Friday, with Afghanistan registering their fourth win in the last 5 matches, and also becoming the sixth overall team to qualify for the Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan.
Afghanistan now has the same number of points as New Zealand and Australia but has to settle down with the fifth spot on the points table due to an inferior net run rate than the other two.
They need to win their next two matches and New Zealand to drop points in one match at least to get direct entry into the final four.
However, it is easier said than done as their last two matches are against Australia and South Africa, which is going to be a tough nut to crack, but the team from Afghanistan will not walk into those matches as just another team and will believe that they can at least one more upset before the end of the league stage matches.
Check out the complete points table of ICC World Cup 2023, till November 4, below:
| Rank | Teams | M | W | L | N/R | Points | Net RR |
| 1 | India (Q) | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 | +2.10 |
| 2 | South Africa | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 12 | +2.29 |
| 3 | Australia | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 8 | +0.97 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8 | +0.48 |
| 5 | Afghanistan | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8 | -0.33 |
| 6 | Pakistan | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | -0.02 |
| 7 | Sri Lanka | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 4 | -1.16 |
| 8 | Netherland | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 4 | -1.39 |
| 9 | Bangladesh (E) | 7 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 2 | -1.44 |
| 10 | England | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | -1.65 |
The final four
The race for the final four is more intense than ever, except for the two teams, India and South Africa, as the former has already confirmed their semi-final berth, and the latter’s official confirmation is just a matter of time.
India, who are sitting comfortably at the top spot with 14 points in 7 games, have already made their way into the semi-finals and are only expected to play the next two games to confirm their top spot finish in the points table.
The unstoppable ‘Team India.’ 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/oxcKn2rXpn
— Awanish Sharan 🇮🇳 (@AwanishSharan) October 29, 2023
The South African team, who are currently at the second spot with 12 points, are only waiting for their official ‘Q’ mark in front of their name. However, when they take the field against India on Sunday, they will also be gunning for the top-spot finish, and what better to achieve that than by defeating the only undefeated team in the tournament.
#WATCH | Mumbai | ICC World Cup | Ahead of the upcoming India vs South Africa match, former South African captain Graeme Smith says, “I have to be honest, they (Team South Africa) have exceeded my expectations. I know that there are some quality players in the squad and all those… pic.twitter.com/rwJ8z2FB3i
— ANI (@ANI) October 30, 2023
The Aussies are also expected to make it to the final four as they already have 8 points from six matches, and with matches left with the likes of Afghanistan and Netherlands, they are well within range to get the ‘Q’ on their own.
Australia’s batting all-rounder is all set to miss his side’s next ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup contest after he suffered a concussion after falling off the back of a golf cart.
Maxwell will miss his team’s encounter against England on 4 November, suffering an injury after falling… pic.twitter.com/yX1fy6KtJs— Nꪖᦔꫀꫀꪑ Wꪖ᥅꠸ꪀᦔ (@NadeemWarind) November 1, 2023
The only team under top 4 with immense pressure ahead of them are the fourth-placed New Zealand, who has 8 points from 7 games and a loss in any of the remaining two games could prove fatal and can send them backpacking.
Jimmy Neesham. 🫡💗 pic.twitter.com/LBhkoa0ZZi
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) October 28, 2023
However, if they manage to win their remaining two matches, they can easily make it to the final 4 without being dependent on others’ results.
Hanging by hope
There are as many as 5 teams in the bottom half of the points table who are still in contention for a top 4 finish mathematically.
This World Cup Gonna be So Memorable For All Afghanistan Fans and For The Cricket Lovers For The Afghanistan Rise and Dominance against Big Teams and Their Performances claps 👏🔥#AFGvsNED pic.twitter.com/SNCHIM7idY
— VINEETH𓃵🦖 (@sololoveee) November 3, 2023
However, only fifth spot Afghanistan and sixth spot Pakistan are the only two teams with two teams with realistic chances of qualification, given that they can win all their remaining games and also the other teams’ results go in their favour too.
