India's ODI World Cup 2023 Clash With Afghanistan on October 11 Will be a Special Occasion For Hardik Pandya, Here's Why

The International Cricket Council’s announcement of the fixtures for the World Cup has gotten the fans talking. India’s fixture against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi, is set to be played on October 11, which incidentally is also Hardik Pandya’s birthday.

Pandya enjoyed a fairly good World Cup back in 2019 but the team just could not get past New Zealand in the semi-finals. The star all-rounder would be keen on adding a major trophy to his name, ending India’s nearly decade-long drought in ICC tournaments.

India’s first challenge in the campaign will be an in-form Australian side, while Afghanistan will take on Bangladesh in the opening game of the World Cup.

The 29-year-old all-rounder is a key asset to the Indian Cricket Team. He has been a consistent performer for the last few years delivering results at crucial times. Hardik has played a career total of nine ODI World Cup innings. He had some impressive performances in those games including the 14th fixture of the ICC World Cup 2019 against Australia where he scored 48 runs in just 27 balls.

Pandya stepped up against West Indies in the same tournament, scoring 46 runs in 38 balls. The all-rounder was decisive against England as well, hitting 45 runs in 33 balls. He even helped out India in the semi-final of the 2019 World Cup against New Zealand scoring 32 runs, but it just was not enough to seal the deal.

India and Afghanistan have squared off against each other a total of three times in the ODI format. India has won two of these fixtures with the third one being a draw.

They last faced Afghanistan in a World Cup on June 22, 2019, where the men in blue were able to clinch the victory, thanks to phenomenal innings from then-skipper Virat Kohli.

Team India will be among the favourites to lift the World Cup Trophy at home after a gap of over 12 years. India will face arch-rivals Pakistan on October 15 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. World Cup 2023 will be played over 46 days with the inaugural match scheduled for October 5.