It was another historic win for Afghanistan in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.

After a surprising upset against England earlier in the tournament, Afghanistan has toppled another former champion.

Pakistan elected to bat first after winning the toss and got off decently. Imam-ul-Haq was the first casualty and was sent back to the dugout with just 17 runs. His fellow opener was next to fall but managed a little over a half-century ( 58 off 75) before his demise.

Pakistani skipper Babar Azam managed to create some scoreboard impact but the next three batsmen did not create any meaningful partnership with him after losing the two openers. He eventually fell for a respectable knock of 74 runs off 92 balls. Shadab Khan and Iftikhar Ahmed, would add some stability at the crease and increase the total by 73 runs before they both fell in the final over, with each of them scoring 40 runs. The Pakistan innings would end with them scoring 282 runs.

The run chase by Afghanistan was a picture of control from the very beginning. The openers established a sterling partnership at the crease, working seamlessly between the wickets to pick up the well-needed runs.

By the time the Pakistani bowling attack got their first wicket, Afghanistan had already put 130 runs on the board. They would eventually claim the other opener, Ibrahim Zadran, but he had already racked up a team-high of 87 runs.

Rahmat Shah and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi would see the Afghanistan side through to the end, with a partnership that produced 96 runs.

Afghanistan would eventually score 286/2 in 49 overs and win by 8 wickets.

Man of the Match went to Afghanistan opening batsman Ibrahim Zadran, whose 87 runs came off 113 balls and included ten 4s. Another notable Afghan performance came from leg-spinner Noor Ahmad. As the lone teenager in the competition, the youngster registered a stellar day of play claiming three wickets for 49 runs.

The former champions will look to rebound against South Africa while Afghanistan will hope to continue this momentum into their next match-up against Sri Lanka.