Afghanistan see off Ireland to clinch ODI series

BELFAST, Ireland: Rashid Khan starred for Afghanistan as the tourists routed Ireland by eight wickets to clinch the One-day International (ODI) series on Friday.

Ireland batted first after winning the toss, but struggled to build any momentum as teenager Rashid wreaked havoc with his leg-breaks.Rashid, 19, took three wickets for 18 runs while Mohammad Nabi and Gulbuddin Naib took two wickets apiece as Ireland were dismissed for 124 in just 36.1 overs.

It was a paltry target that Afghanistan easily chased down, reaching 127 for the loss of just two wickets inside 24 overs at Stormont. Ihsanullah Janat top-scored with an unbeaten 57, with the opener accompanied for much of the innings by Hashmatullah Shahidi, whose 34 was the second-highest score of the match.

Afghanistan’s victory ensured they took the three-match series 2-1 after winning the opening game by 29 runs on Monday and losing the second by three wickets on Wednesday.It was a double success for Afghanistan after they also won 2-0 in last week’s Twenty20 series against Ireland.

Ireland won toss

Ireland

*W Porterfield c Asghar b Aftab 14

P Stirling c Shahzad b Aftab 2

A Balbirnie c Shahzad b Naib 17

†N O’Brien lbw Naib 1

S Singh lbw Rashid 17

K O’Brien lbw Rashid 16

G Wilson lbw Asghar 23

A McBrine c Aftab b Nabi 16

T Murtagh lbw Rashid 2

B Rankin c Naib b Nabi 4

P Chase not out 4

Extras (4lb, 4w) 8

Total (all-out, 36.1 overs) 124

Fall: 1-7, 2-34, 3-38, 4-39, 5-71, 6-72, 7-109, 8-111, 9-119, 10-124

Bowling: Aftab 7-0-22-2, Mujeeb 7-1-19-0, Naib 5-1-34-2, Rashid 8-2-18-3, Nabi 8.1-0-26-2, Asghar 1-0-1-1

Afghanistan

†M Shahzad c Murtagh b Rankin 1

Ihsanullah not out 57

R Shah lbw Murtagh 33

H Shahidi not out 34

Extras (2w) 2

Total (2 wickets, 23.5 overs) 127

Fall: 1-3, 2-53

Bowling: Murtagh 7-0-39-1, Rankin 7-1-30-1, Chase 5-0-33-0, McBrine 4.5-0-25-0

Did not bat: N Zadran, *A Afghan, G Naib, M Nabi, R Khan, A Alam, Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Result: Afghanistan won by 8 wickets

Series: Afghanistan won the 3-match series 2-1

Man of the Series: Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)

Umpires: Ian Gould (England), Alan Neill (Ireland). TV Umpire: Mark Hawthorne (Ireland). Match Referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka)