Afghanistan thump UAE to register first win in T20I tri-series

Afghanistan defeated the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to clinch first win in the T20I tri-series at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday.

The hosts, while chasing a daunting 189-run target, could accumulate 150/8 despite half-centuries from skipper Muhammad Waseem and wicketkeeper batter Rahul Chopra.

The home side were in a decent position after eight overs as they were 76/1, with skipper Waseem and Ethan D’Souza set in the middle.

But, Rashid Khan trapped D’Souza lbw on the first delivery of the ninth over to unsettle UAE’s pursuit.

Waseem fell victim to Sharafuddin Ashraf in the next over after top-scoring for the home side with a 37-ball 67, featuring 10 boundaries, including six sixes.

Following his dismissal, UAE began to lose wickets at an alarming rate, which halted the flow of runs, and they were eventually restricted to 150/8.

Wicketkeeper batter Rahul Chopra offered notable resistance and remained unbeaten with 52 off 35 deliveries with the help of three fours and as many sixes.

For Afghanistan, Rashid and Ashraf claimed three wickets each, while Fazalhaq Farooqi and Mohammad Nabi made one scalp apiece.

Put into bat first, the Rashid Khan-led side racked up 188/4 in their allotted 20 overs, courtesy of an anchoring second-wicket partnership between Atal and Zadran.

Afghanistan got off to a contrasting start to their innings as hard-hitting opening batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz (seven) fell victim to Muhammad Rohid on the first delivery of the fourth over with just 16 runs on the board.

Following the early stutter, Zadran joined Atal in the middle and the duo turned the tide in Afghanistan’s favour by putting together 84 runs for the second wicket off just 55 deliveries.

The crucial stand eventually culminated with Atal’s dismissal off Saghir Khan in the 13th over. The opening batter scored 54 off 40 deliveries, laced with four fours and three sixes.

Zadran was then involved in a brief 20-run partnership for the third wicket with Darwish Rasooli, who could score 10 off seven deliveries before being dismissed by Rohid.

The top-order batter and all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai then took Afghanistan’s total past the 150-run mark by putting together a balanced 40-run partnership, which eventually culminated with Zadran’s dismissal in the 18th over.

Zadran remained the top-scorer for Afghanistan with a 40-ball 63, studded with three fours and four sixes.

Following his departure, Omarzai and Karim Janat registered an unbeaten 28-run partnership, ensuring a strong finish for Afghanistan despite Junaid Siddique’s four-run final over.

For UAE, Saghir and Rohid took two wickets each, while the rest went wicketless, including Junaid, who needed just one to complete 100 scalps in T20Is.

The victory marked Afghanistan's first in the T20I tri-series and lifted them to the second position in the standings as they now have two points in two matches, while UAE sank to the bottom after losing both their opening matches.