Cricket World Cup 2023 Points Table: New Zealand’s Victory Alters Pakistan and Afghanistan’s Top 4 Aspirations

Cricket World Cup 2023 Points Table: Assessing Pakistan and Afghanistan’s Semi-Final Prospects Following New Zealand’s Triumph Over Sri Lanka.

The hopes of both Pakistan and Afghanistan for securing a spot in the Cricket World Cup 2023 semi-finals suffered a significant setback as New Zealand comfortably clinched a five-wicket victory against Sri Lanka on Thursday. With this triumph, New Zealand has amassed 10 points from 9 matches, boasting a Net Run Rate of +0.743. Consequently, Pakistan, currently holding the fifth position with 8 points from 8 matches, faces the daunting task of winning their last game against England by a substantial margin. According to calculations, if Pakistan bats first, they need to secure a victory by 287 runs, and in the case of chasing, they must win with 284 balls remaining. Afghanistan, with a Net Run Rate of -0.338, finds itself virtually out of the semi-finals contention, given their NRR is the least favorable compared to New Zealand and Pakistan.

In pursuit of a modest target of 172 for victory, New Zealand’s openers, Devon Conway (45) and Rachin Ravindra (42), formed a solid partnership of 86, effortlessly achieving the target with 160 balls to spare in Bengaluru.

Maintaining their position in fourth place with 10 points, New Zealand now holds a significant advantage over Pakistan and Afghanistan, notably due to their superior net run-rate.