Credit: ICC
On June 18, 2019, England’s former captain Eoin Morgan broke into record books for hitting the most number of maximums in the International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup game against Afghanistan played in Manchester. At the toss, Morgan emerged victorious against his counterpart Gulbaddin Naib and elected to bat first. The English side got a fine start in the game, riding on Jonny Bairstow’s 90 off just 99. After the opener’s departure, captain Morgan walked into the middle and took Afghanistan’s bowling attack to the cleaners. The southpaw, along with Joe Root, stitched a 189-run stand in just 101 balls.
Morgan brought his ton in just 57 balls and went on to become the England player with the fastest century in the ICC World Cups. After smashing his hundred, he didn’t relent and went on to continue his onslaught against the Afghan side. He concluded his knock in the 47th over of the match, hitting 148 off just 71 balls. His innings was studded with 21 boundaries (four fours and 17 maximums). With his 17 sixes, he surpassed Chris Gayle’s feat of 16 sixes for West Indies against Zimbabwe in the World Cup 2015 game held in Canberra.
England clinched their fourth Cricket World Cup’s fourth biggest win (by runs)
Riding on Eoin Morgan’s sensational batting display, England delivered a colossal target of 398 to Afghanistan. It was the seventh instance after the World Cup 2015 that the English team posted a 375+ score on the board. Chasing the humongous target, the Afghan side capitulated to 247/8 in their 50 overs.
Morgan’s ferocious leadership and batting also emboldened England bowlers. Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid took three wickets apiece in the game. Morgan also got the Player of the Match (POTM) award for his batting brilliance. His knock is still England’s highest player score in Cricket World Cups while England's 150-run triumph is their fourth most-successful win (by runs) in the marquee 50-over event.
