T20 WC: Huge blunder occurs in Australia vs Afghanistan match, Naveen bowls five-ball over

Australia and Afghanistan locked horns against each other in their final Super 12 match of the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022 on Friday. Australia won the game by 4 runs after Afghanistan failed to chase down a target of 169 runs in 20 overs. Meanwhile, an umpiring blunder occurred in the crucial match that affected the qualification chances of Australia. Only five balls were bowled in one of the overs of Australia's innings, leaving everyone in shock. 

The error happened in the fourth over of Australia's innings which was being bowled by Afghan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq. The first two deliveries of the over went for 1 run each before Mitchell Marsh smashed the third ball for a boundary. On the fourth delivery of the over, Marsh and opener David Warner stole three runs from an overthrow. The fifth delivery was a dot and that's it, the umpires then moved to the next over. Neither side spotted the blunder from the on-field umpires as they continued playing the game.  

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Australia vs Afghanistan

As far as the match is concerned, Afghanistan won the toss and opted to field first at Adelaide Oval. Batting first, Australia posted a total of 168/8 in 20 overs. Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh played some impactful knocks as they scored 54 and 45 runs, respectively. Marcus Stoinis and David Warner also contributed with 25 runs each. The rest of the Australian batters were dismissed for single-digit scores. 

Naveen-ul-Haq picked a three-wicket haul, while Fazalhaq Farooqi scalped two wickets to his name. Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Rashid Khan picked one wicket each. 

In the second innings, Afghanistan were looking good to chase down the total courtesy of a 59-run partnership between Gulbadin Naib and Ibrahim Zadran. However, a series of wickets fell after Naib and Zadran's dismissal, putting Australia ahead in the game. Rashid Khan and Darwish Rasooli then pulled things back for their side with a 44-run partnership but couldn't cross the finish line. Rashid scored 48 off 23 balls with a strike rate of 208.69. 

Josh Hazlewood and Adam Zampa picked two wickets each for Australia, while Kane Richardson scalped one to his name. Maxwell was named the player of the match for his outstanding batting and exceptional fielding. 

Image: Twitter/T20WorldCup