New Delhi: Outplayed by underdogs Afghanistan on Sunday, England now has lost to 11 different nations in the history of the ODI Cricket World Cup, while West Indies are in second place having lost to 10 different nations in the history of the marquee tournament.
Afghanistan stunned defending champions England in a major upset of the ongoing World Cup during their league stage game at the 'Kotla' in New Delhi on Sunday. England lost by 69 runs as Afghanistan spinners ran riot with Mujeeb ur Rahman, Rashid Khan and Mohammed Nabi taking eight wickets between them.
While it was a historical moment for Afghanistan in their cricketing history, it was a disheartening moment for England, who won the ODI World Cup for the first time in 2019. England now have lost to 11 different teams in the history of the World Cup. With Afghanistan becoming the 11th team, the other ones on the list are Australia, Bangladesh, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies and Zimbabwe.
Here is the record for losing against most teams in World Cup (among the first 8 full-member teams):
- 11 - England
- 10 - West Indies
- 9 - South Africa
- 8 - Australia
- 8 - India
- 8 - Pakistan
- 8 - Sri Lanka
- 7 - New Zealand
Afghanistan handed Jos Buttler-led side their second defeat after New Zealand beat the English by nine wickets in their lung opener, courtesy of blistering tons by Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra at Ahmedabad. England won against Bangladesh at Dharamsala, the match in which Dawid Malan scored a century.
From here on, each game becomes important for England and they will need to win most of them to stay in the tournament and defend the title. Cricket is a game of upsets and Afghanistan just proved it again on Sunday in front of a capacity crowd at the Kotla.
Also read: World Cup 2023 | ENG vs AFG Live: Afghanistan stun defending champions England by 69 runs
