Azmatullah Omarzai put in an all-round display with bat and ball to help Afghanistan beat UAE by 5 wickets. Omarzai first starred with the ball and then shone with the bat. Omarzai looked good and was the difference between the two sides. Afghanistan put UAE into bat first. Omarzai picked up 4/15 while Sohaib Khan scored a valiant 68 runs as UAE posted 160/9 in 20 overs.
In reply, Afghanistan rode on initially a half-century from Ibrahim Zadran and then an unbeaten 40 off 21 balls which helped the Afghans getting over the line by 5 wickets with 4 balls to spare. UAE tried their best but Afghanistan were too good and better on the day.
Sohaib Khan’s magnificent 68 outshines Azmatullah Omarzai’s 4-wicket haul as UAE posts 160/9.Â
Put into bat first, keeper batter Aryansh Sharma and captain Muhammad Waseem came out to open for UAE while Azmatullah Omarzai had ball in hand for Afghanistan. Afghanistan got off to a perfect start as Omarzai removed Aryansh for a duck in the first over itself as the ball carried just to the keeper. Alishan Sharafu came out to bat next. Muhammad Waseem played his shots as he hit two boundaries off Mujeeb Ur Rahman. But Mujeeb had his man as he dismissed Waseem for 10 off 6 balls with 2 fours to his name as only 13 runs were on the board.
Sohaib Khan came and joined Sharafu in the middle and both had to repair the innings for UAE. Repairing the innings they did as both the players counter attacked the Afghanistan bowlers who were off the boil as well. Sohaib was the aggressor while Sharafu was complimenting him and supported him well. The duo took the powerplay score to 55/2 in 6 overs.
The duo carried on their merry ways after the powerplay as well and went through the next 4 overs unscathed. After 10 overs at the halfway stage of the innings, UAE were 92/2. It is after this phase that Afghanistan made a comeback and restricted UAE to a par score. The duo added an amazing 84-run stand for the third wicket before Sharafu fell for 40 off 31 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Syed Haider Shah came out to bat next.
Haider Shah came and played a few good shots while Sohaib kept it going for UAE. The duo added 17 runs for the 4th wicket before Shah fell for 13 off 10 balls with one four and one six to his name to Omarzai. Harshit Kaushik came out to bat next. Another one fell in the same over as Omarzai had two in the over with Kaushik falling for a bronze duck. Muhammad Arfan came out to bat next.
Sohaib continued to do the heavy lifting for his side. Just another 7 runs were added to the score with Arfan then falling for a silver duck. Haider Ali came in next to join Sohaib in the middle. The duo got together and forged a partnership of note as Sohaib completed his half-century and carried on from there. Haider also played his shots as the duo added 31 runs for the 7th wicket before the well-set Sohaib Khan departed for 68 off 48 balls with 6 fours and 4 sixes to his name to Omarzai. Simranjeet Singh Kang came out to bat next.
Just 5 runs were added to the tally before Haider fell for 13 off 12 balls with 2 fours to his name via a run out. Junaid Siddique came out to bat next. 2 balls were left and 3 runs were scored before Siddique fell for 3 off 2 balls to another run out. Kang remained unbeaten on 3 off 4 balls. UAE finished with 160/9 with 10 extras given by the fielding side.
Azmatullah Omarzai was the pick of the bowlers for Afghanistan with figures of 4/15 in 4 overs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman finished with 2/31 in 4 overs. Rashid Khan finished with 1/24 in 4 overs. Ziaur Rahman Sharifi finished with 0/43 in 4 overs. Noor Ahmad finished with 0/35 in 3 overs. Gulbadin Naib finished with 0/8 in 1 over. This meant that the target for Afghanistan was 161 runs to win off 20 overs.
All-Round Batting Performance led by Ibrahim Zadran takes Afghanistan over the line.Â
Chasing 161 for their first win in this tournament, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran opened the batting for Afghanistan while Junaid Siddique had ball in hand for UAE. Afghanistan lost an early wicket as Gurbaz fell for a silver duck to Siddique. Gulbadin Naib came out to bat next. Naib and Ibrahim tried to forge a partnership. Ibrahim was doing the bulk of the scoring. The duo put on 40 runs for the second wicket before Naib fell for 13 off 12 balls with one four to his name to Muhammad Arfan. Sediqullah Atal came out to bat next.
The powerplay score was 41/2 in 6 overs for the Afghans. The duo of Atal and Ibrahim tried to form another partnership and added 30 runs for the 3rd wicket before Atal fell for 16 off 14 balls with one four and one six to his name to Muhammad Jawadullah. Darwish Rasooli came out to bat next. Ibrahim and Rasooli started to forge a partnership as Ibrahim was well set and Rasooli played himself in. The duo added 27 runs again in the middle phase before Ibrahim fell for 53 off 41 balls with 6 fours and one six to his name to Arfan.
Azmatullah Omarzai came out to bat next. Omarzai had a stellar role to play with the ball and then he was about to shine with the bat now. Rasooli also looked good out there and the duo took care of the asking rate. They paced the innings beautifully and aced the death overs phase. Rasooli showed what he is made of but it was Omarzai who stole the show in the end. The duo of Rasooli and Omarzai added 43 runs for the 5th wicket in quick time to completely take the game away from UAE.
Eventually Rasooli fell for 33 off 23 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name to Junaid Siddique. Mohammad Nabi came out to bat next with the score at 140/5 in 17.3 overs. Omarzai made sure that he took the matter into his own hands and finished the things off in style including the winning runs. He and Nabi added 22 runs for the unbroken 6th wicket as Afghanistan eventually got over the line by 5 wickets with 4 balls to spare. Omarzai remained unbeaten on 40 off 21 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes to his name while Nabi was unbeaten on 3 off 3 balls. 4 extras given by the fielding side.
Junaid Siddique finished with 2/23 in 3.2 overs. Muhammad Arfan finished with 2/30 in 4 overs. Muhammad Jawadullah finished with 1/39 in 4 overs. Haider Ali finished with 0/33 in 4 overs. Simranjeet Singh Kang finished with 0/37 in 4 overs. So, Afghanistan win by 5 wickets with 4 balls to spare. For his all-round display, Azmatullah Omarzai was adjudged the Player of the Match.
What Lies Ahead.Â
So, Afghanistan gets a much-needed win and will next face Canada in their last group game while UAE will face South Africa a few days later. More action to come today. England takes on Italy in a Group C game in Kolkata next and followed by the feature match as hosts Sri Lanka takes on Australia in a Group B clash in Pallekele in a must-win game for Australia. So, a lot of action to come on Monday in World Cup.
Also Read:Â ICC T20 WC 2026: UAE Strikes Early To Peg Afghanistan Back In Chase.