HARARE: Skipper Asghar Stanikzai put a bout of appendicitis behind him to guide Afghanistan to a five-wicket victory over Ireland on Friday to qualify for next year's Cricket World Cup.
Afghanistan, after losing their opening three qualifying games, suffered a middle-order wobble that looked to have handed Ireland the advantage.
But Stanikzai, who received on-field treatment for dressings around his abdomen, hit an invaluable 39 not out off 29 balls to guide the Afghans to 213 for five in reply to Ireland's 209-7.
"I am in too much pain, but I was playing for the country," said Stanikzai. "It is our dream to qualify for the World Cup."
Afghanistan will join fellow qualifiers West Indies in the 10-team World Cup to be staged in England and Wales from May 30 to July 14, 2019, alongside defending champions Australia, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, England, South Africa and New Zealand.
After Scotland and Zimbabwe had both suffered defeats in their concluding Super Six matches earlier in the week, Friday's game at the Harare Sports Club suddenly became a winner-takes-all clash.
Ireland won the toss and elected to bat with opener Paul Stirling making a top score of 55 and Kevin O'Brien hitting 41 in a modest total of 209-7 off their 50 overs.
Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan finished with 3-40 to take his career tally to 99 ODI wickets.
In reply, burly opener Mohammad Shahzad clobbered 54 off 50 balls in an opening stand of 86 with Gulbadin Naib.
But once Shahzad holed out, Afghanistan, who only squeezed into the Super Sixes after losing to Scotland, Zimbabwe and Hong Kong, began to wobble.
But skipper Stanikzai and Najibullah Zadran, the latter finishing on 17 not out, settled the side and led the Afghans to a memorable victory with five balls to play.
"We lost a couple of matches, but we played good cricket in the Super Sixes," said man-of-the-match Shahzad.
"We had to win this game."
Ireland captain William Porterfield was left in tears after the game.
"First of all, congratulations to Afghanistan," he said. "We were probably 25 runs short.
"Then again in games like this we can't fault anyone.
"We had opportunities but we lost three games. We had some key moments, but could not take it."
Afghanistan complete dramatic turnaround to qualify for Cricket World Cup
Afghanistan complete dramatic turnaround to qualify for Cricket World Cup
Tottenham names Igor Tudor interim manager till end of season
- The former Juventus coach takes over till the end of the season
- Tottenham’s next fixture is at home to local rival Arsenal on Feb. 22
LONDON: Tottenham appointed Igor Tudor as interim manager on Saturday after Thomas Frank was fired three days ago.
The former Juventus coach takes over till the end of the season at a time when Spurs are just five points above the relegation zone in the Premier League.
“It is an honor to join this club at an important moment,” Tudor said. “I understand the responsibility I have been handed and my focus is clear. To bring greater consistency to our performances and compete with conviction in every match.
“There is strong quality in this playing squad and my job is to organize it, energize it and improve our results quickly.”
Juventus fired Tudor on Oct. 27 following three straight losses and an eight-match winless run, with the Italian powerhouse eighth in Serie A.
The 47-year-old Croatian was previously in charge of Lazio, Udinese, Marseille, Galatasaray and other clubs in Croatia and elsewhere.
Tudor is the sixth head coach in less than seven years at Spurs since Mauricio Pochettino departed in 2019.
Frank was fired after he failed to build on his success at Brentford.
Despite leading Spurs to the round of 16 in the Champions League, Frank has overseen a desperate domestic campaign. A 2-1 loss to Newcastle on Tuesday was greeted by boos from the home fans and left the club without a league win in 2026.
The home defeat to Newcastle extended a woeful run to one win in 11 in England’s top flight.
Spurs dropped to 16th in the standings, two places above the relegation zone.
Frank was appointed at the end of last season when Ange Postecoglou was fired despite leading Tottenham to its first trophy in 17 years by winning the Europa League and securing Champions League qualification.
Tottenham’s next fixture is at home to local rival Arsenal in the Premier League on Feb. 22.
