Manchester: Captain Eoin Morgan (148, 71b, 4×4, 17×6) smashed a world record for most sixes in an innings, firing England to a gigantic 397 for six before restricting Afghanistan to 247/8, thus scripting a 150-run win, in their ICC World Cup game here, Tuesday.
Morgan, en route his career-best knock, also hit the fourth fastest hundred in World Cup history, getting his 13th ODI hundred off only 57 balls. Apart from 17 sixes, the left-hander also hit four boundaries.
Opener Jonny Bairstow (90, 99b, 8×4, 3×6) and Joe Root (88, 82b, 5×4, 1×6) also played their part but were overshadowed by the skipper who pulverised the hapless Afghan bowling attack.
Afghanistan’s T20 superstar Rashid Khan got a reality check as he also had the ignominy of being hit for a ‘hundred’. His bowling figures read a pathetic 9-0-110-0 with 11 sixes being hit off his bowling.
Morgan primarily targeted the arc between long-on and long-off and repeatedly dispatched the length balls in between these areas with a few straight sixes. He was particularly severe on Rashid, who till date has never been hit for more than two sixes in his innings.
The other IPL star Mohammed Nabi (0/70 in 9 overs) also got a pasting and so did Gulbadin Naib as Morgan and Root added 189 runs in 16.5 overs. In all, the English batsmen hit 25 sixes. Even Moeen Ali had a little feast scoring 31 off 15 balls with four sixes.
In reply, Afghanistan skipper Naib (37, 28b, 4×4, 1×6) promoted himself up the batting order as he opened the innings with Noor Ali Zadran. Afghanistan never looked in chase as they lost wickets at regular intervals. The only notable partnership was forged between Hashmatullah Shahidi (76, 100b, 5×4, 2×6) and Asghar Afghan (44, 48b, 3×4, 2×6) – 64 runs for the fourth wicket.
Rahmat Shah (46) also batted well for Afghanistan. For England, Jofra Archer (3/52), Adil Rashid (3/66) and Mark Wood (2/40) took the wickets.
Brief scores: England 397/6 (Eoin Morgan 148, Jonny Bairstow 90, Joe Root 88; Gulbadin Naib 3/68) bt Afghanistan (Hashmatullah Shahidi 76; Jofra Archer 3/52) by 150 runs.