Key Points:
Afghanistan performed brilliantly and defeated host team Zimbabwe by 53 runs in the first T20. Azmatullah Omarzai was adjudged ‘Player of the Match’ for his all-round performance. The second T20 match of the series will be played on this ground on 31 October.
Delhi: The first match of the three-match T20 series between Zimbabwe and Afghanistan was played in Harare on Wednesday, 29 October. In this match, Afghanistan performed brilliantly and defeated the host team by 53 runs. With this victory, Afghanistan took a 1-0 lead in the series.
Afghanistan’s brilliant batting
Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan won the toss and decided to bat first. Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran gave the team a fast start. Gurbaz scored 39 runs, while Zadran played a brilliant inning of 52 runs. Sediqullah Atal added 25 runs, Azmatullah Umarzai added 27 runs and Shahidullah added 22 runs. Afghanistan team scored 180 runs at the loss of 6 wickets in 20 overs.
For Zimbabwe, captain Sikandar Raza took maximum 3 wickets, while Blessing Muzarabani got 2 wickets.
Zimbabwe kneels before Mujib
While chasing the target, Zimbabwe team was seen struggling from the beginning. After the first wicket fell at 16 runs, batsmen kept coming and going. The entire team collapsed for 127 runs. Tinotenda Maposa scored the highest score of 32 runs, while Brian Bennett and Brad Evans scored 24 runs each. Rest of the players could not play big innings.
For Afghanistan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman bowled brilliantly and took 4 wickets. Azmatullah Omarzai took 3 wickets and Abdullah Ahmadzai took 2 wickets.
Azmatullah Omarzai was adjudged ‘Player of the Match’ for his all-round performance. The second T20 match of the series will be played on this ground on 31 October.
