South Africa soundly defeated Afghanistan in the 42nd game of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, crushing the Afghan team’s hopes of making it to the semifinals. Now, on November 16, the Proteas are set to play Australia in the second semi-final. Pakistan now faces a hard fight to guarantee their own place in the semi-finals, as New Zealand’s thrilling victory over Sri Lanka the day before has considerably increased their chances of doing so.
An important blow was sustained when Sri Lanka failed to qualify directly for the Champions Trophy in 2025. England, on the other hand, showed a remarkable comeback, overcoming the Netherlands to record their second victory of the competition and move one step closer to a Champions Trophy 2025 berth. However, if they struggle against Pakistan this Saturday, their hopes of making the semi-finals would be in jeopardy. To maintain their own chances of making it to the semifinals, The Men In Green, on the other hand, need to defeat England handily.
Pakistan, with eight points from an equal number of games, is in fifth place in the standings and confronts a difficult task ahead. In their forthcoming match in Kolkata against England, they must put up a strong show. They must win by 287 runs if they bat first or by 284 balls remaining, which is more than 47 overs if they chase. Since Pakistan has a lot of disadvantages, it seems expected that New Zealand will play India in the opening semi-final on November 15 at the Wankhede Stadium.
ODI World Cup 2023 Points Table:
|
Position |
Team | Played | Won | Lost | Points | NRR |
| 1 | India | 8 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2.456 |
| 2 | South Africa | 9 | 7 | 2 | 14 | 1.376 |
| 3 | Australia | 8 | 6 | 2 | 12 | 0.861 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 9 | 5 | 4 | 10 | +0.922 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 0.036 |
| 6 | Afghanistan | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 | -0.338 |
| 7 | England | 8 | 2 | 6 | 4 | -0.855 |
| 8 | Bangladesh | 8 | 2 | 6 | 4 | -1.142 |
| 9 | Sri Lanka | 9 | 2 | 7 | 4 | -1.419 |
| 10 | Netherlands | 8 | 2 | 6 | 4 | -1.635 |
Players who are leading the Most’s charts
Most runs in World Cup 2023:
Rachin Ravindra, a youthful wonder from New Zealand, is leading the list of players with the most runs scored in the 2023 World Cup. Many people are surprised that this is his first World Cup appearance given his form and style of middle-of-the-bat batting. With 565 runs at an average of 70.62, he is followed in scoring position by Quinton de Kock, a South African wicketkeeper with 550 runs. With 543 runs in his career, India’s top player Virat Kohli is the other hitter who is quite near.
| Rank | Batter | Country | Matches | Runs | Average | Strike Rate |
| 1 | Rachin Ravindra | New Zealand | 9 | 565 | 70.62 | 108.45 |
| 2 | Quinton de Kock | South Africa | 8 | 550 | 68.75 | 111.34 |
| 3 | Virat Kohli | India | 8 | 543 | 108.60 | 88.29 |
| 4 | David Warner | Australia | 8 | 446 | 55.75 | 108.25 |
| 5 | Rohit Sharma | India | 8 | 442 | 55.25 | 122.78 |
Most Wickets in World Cup 2023:
Even if Sri Lanka didn’t perform well in the competition, they can still be happy with one thing. With 21 scalps at an average of 24.62, their pace wonder Dilshan Madhushanka is way ahead of the pack in the statistics for most wickets. With 20 wickets under his belt, Adam Zampa is breathing down his neck and may overthrow him at any point. With 17 wickets, third-place player Marco Jansen will need to put on an incredible spell to pass these bowlers.
| Rank | Bowler | Country | Matches | Overs | Wickets | Average |
| 1 | Dilshan Madushanka | Sri Lanka | 8 | 78.2 | 21 | 24.62 |
| 2 | Adam Zampa | Australia | 8 | 69.0 | 20 | 19.20 |
| 3 | Marco Jansen | South Africa | 8 | 64.4 | 17 | 24.41 |
| 4 | Mohammed Shami | India | 4 | 26.0 | 16 | 7.00 |
| 5 | Shaheen Afridi | Pakistan | 8 | 71.0 | 16 | 25.56 |
India
