Watch: A direct hit by Rahmat Shah ran out Marnus Labuschagne as Afghanistan inched closer to a historic win against Australia in the 2023 World Cup.
Australia set a record of 292 runs against Afghanistan in the Wankhede and recorded their sixth consecutive win in the tournament, but they were on the back foot from the start and lost four wickets in the first power play. With Afghanistan aiming to qualify for the semi-finals, Rabsukanye took a direct hit and lost his fifth wicket in the 15th over.
Rashid Khan bowled an errant ball and the ball fell to the right of Rahmat, who was standing at midwicket. Maxwell immediately started running, but Labuschagne arrived too late to depart. However, a weak throw from striker-end Rahmat seemed to save Labuschagne, who dived for his life as the direct hit dismantled the stumps.
An on-field umpire went to check and found that Labuschagne’s bat was in the air, even though it had crossed the line. According to the law, if a player does not land within the circle and crosses the line with his racket in the air, he is declared a run-out.
Labuschagne was forced to concede on 14 off 28 balls as Australia lost 69-5. If Australia wins, they will advance to the semi-finals, and if they defeat Afghanistan, they will move up to 10 points, level with Australia and ahead of New Zealand and Pakistan.
Watch Labuschagne’s run out here:
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