Abhishek Sharma stole the show in the chase as his magnificent 82 off 32 balls helped India chase down 157 in 13.4 overs. Abhishek Sharma dazzled under the lights in New Delhi as his swashbuckling innings took the game away from the hosts. He was ably supported by Ishan Kishan in the chase as the 121-run stand in quick time sealed the deal for India. Afghanistan had Mohammad Nabi pick up 2 wickets and Omarzai pick up a wicket.
For Afghanistan, they were in tatters at 43/5 in 7 overs but remarkably recovered to get to 156/8 thanks to Azmatullah Omarzai’s 64* off 44 balls, aided by Nabi’s 33 helped Afghanistan recover and get close to 160. It was a competitive score, but not a winning score against this Indian side, and that proved to be the case in the end.
Azmatullah Omarzai’s swashbuckling half-century powers Afghanistan to a fighting 156/8 in 20 overs
Put into bat first, keeper batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz and captain Ibrahim Zadran came out to open the batting for Afghanistan while Jasprit Bumrah had the ball in hand for India. Bumrah started in wayward fashion but soon got his mojo back. The openers put on 5 runs for the first wicket in 2 balls before Gurbaz fell for a silver duck to Bumrah, with Abhishek Sharma taking a good catch at first slip.
Sediqullah Atal came out to bat next. Ibrahim and Atal then started to counterattack the Indian bowlers, who were bowling wayward lines as well. The duo put on 33 for the second wicket before Ibrahim fell for 11 off 10 balls with 2 fours to his name through a run out against the run of play by Ishan Kishan. Gulbadin Naib came out to bat next. Just one run was added to the score before Atal fell for 13 off 13 balls with one four and one six to his name to Arshdeep Singh.
Darwish Rasooli came out to bat next. Just two more runs were added to the score before Naib fell for 2 off 6 balls to Axar Patel. Azmatullah Omarzai came out to bat next. Just 2 runs were added to the score before Rasooli fell for 2 off 6 balls to Varun Chakaravarthy as the bowler knocked him over. Mohammad Nabi came out to bat next. Afghanistan were struggling at 43/5 in 7 overs at this stage, in all sorts of trouble.
Then came the Afghan fightback from here, led by Omarzai, and Nabi supported him well. They initially played themselves in, and then played their shots. They were aided by sloppy bowling and fielding by the Indians. Omarzai was the star while Nabi played second fiddle. The duo navigated the middle phase really well and set things up for the death overs. The duo put on 83 priceless runs for the 6th wicket in double quick time.
Nabi looked settled and so did Omarzai, and just then India broke the partnership as Nabi was dismissed for 33 off 27 balls with 2 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Arshdeep Singh, who cleaned him up with a yorker. Omarzai was meanwhile given a reprieve as Ishan Kishan dropped him in the deep when he was batting on 39*. After the fall of Nabi, Rashid Khan came out to bat, and it was a struggle for him with the bat in hand.
Just 5 runs were added to the tally before Rashid fell for 1 off 10 balls to Arshdeep Singh. Noor Ahmad came out to bat next and was dismissed next ball for a golden duck, run out. Mujeeb Ur Rahman came out to bat next. From here onwards, Omarzai took charge alongside Mujeeb as well and tore Shivam Dube apart.
Dube, who came on to bowl the final over after having now bowled for the previous 19 overs, was taken to the cleaners first by Omarzai and then, when Mujeeb came on strike, he managed to get a couple of boundaries away with a flat bat over covers to end the over and innings. The duo put on 25 runs for the 9th wicket, and 21 off them came in the last over bowled by Dube.
Afghanistan ended with 156/8 in 20 overs, with Omarzai unbeaten on 64 off 44 balls with 4 fours and 4 sixes to his name alongside Mujeeb’s unbeaten 9 off 3 balls with 2 fours to his name. 21 extras were gifted by India.
As far as India’s bowling, it was good. Arshdeep Singh was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/19 in 4 overs. Varun Chakaravarthy finished with 1/16 in 4 overs. Jasprit Bumrah finished with 1/26 in 4 overs. Axar Patel finished with 1/27 in 4 overs. Nitish Kumar Reddy finished with 0/30 in 2 overs. Abhishek Sharma finished with 0/8 in 1 over. Shivam Dube bowled an over for 21 runs. This meant that the target for India was 157 runs to win off 20 overs to take a 1-0 lead in the 3-match series.
Abhishek Sharma’s blazing 82 powers India to a convincing win by 7 wickets
Chasing 157 for the win, keeper batter Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma came out to open the batting for India while Fazalhaq Farooqi opened the bowling for Afghanistan. The Indian team was a determined lot out there as they came out quickly out of the blocks. Sanju looked good while Abhishek was settling in. The duo put on 18 runs for the first wicket before Sanju fell for 10 off 8 balls with 2 fours to his name to Azmatullah Omarzai. Ishan Kishan came out to bat next.
From here, there was no looking back for India as the two southpaws were determined to get the job done single-handedly. It was the Abhishek Sharma show as his blazing innings pushed Afghanistan back. The power play was great for India as they smashed 82 runs in that phase, and that really sealed the game. Afghanistan’s bowlers were taken to the cleaners, and Rashid, who struggled with the bat, had a day to forget with the ball too.
Ishan Kishan also gave him company as he was the man in form coming into this match. But he understood the situation really well and complemented Abhishek. The duo put on a match-winning 121-run stand for the second wicket before Abhishek fell for a brilliant 82 off 32 balls with 7 fours and 7 sixes to his name to Mohammad Nabi. Captain Shreyas Iyer came out to bat next.
But by now the match was sealed, and it was a matter of when and not if India would win this match. Ishan and Iyer then got together and put on 13 runs for the 3rd wicket before Ishan fell for 42 off 33 balls with 5 fours and one six to his name to Nabi as Rashid took a good catch at long-on. Tilak Varma came out to bat next.
Iyer and Tilak joined forces with 5 runs to get and completed the chase with calmness as India got over the line in 13.4 overs. Iyer was unbeaten on 8 off 5 balls with one four to his name, while Tilak was unbeaten on 3 off 4 balls. 12 extras were given by the fielding side.
From Afghanistan’s point of view with the ball in hand, Mohammad Nabi finished with 2/28 in 3 overs. Azmatullah Omarzai finished with 1/14 in 1 over. Fazalhaq Farooqi finished with 0/38 in 2 overs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman finished with 0/16 in 2 overs. Rashid Khan finished with 0/34 in 3.4 overs. Noor Ahmad bowled 2 overs for 25 runs. So, India won this match by 7 wickets with 38 balls to spare to take a 1-0 lead in the 3-match series. Abhishek Sharma was awarded the Player of the Match award.
What Lies Ahead
India are 1-0 up in the series and will look to seal the series in the next game, which takes place at the same venue on Tuesday, 15th September, 2026. It will be the second T20I that will take place. Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi will host all the matches taking place. Can India seal the series 2-0? Or will Afghanistan level the series 1-1? We shall find out on Tuesday night.
Also Read: AFG VS IND: Azmatullah Omarzai’s Swashbuckling Half-Century Helps Afghanistan Post 156/8.