Azmatullah Omarzai and Rashid Khan helped Afghanistan beat an untidy Zimbabwe by three wickets and take the series 2-1 on Saturday, December 14. Azmatullah Omarzai was awarded the Player of the Match for his outstanding all-round performance. Naveen Ul Haq was awarded the Player of the Series for his impressive bowling, picking up 8 wickets in three games.
The skipper Rashid Khan (4/27) returned with four wickets, whereas Azmatullah Omarzai (2/10), Mujeeb Ur Rahman (2/20), and Naveen Ul Haq (2/27) picked up two wickets apiece as Afghanistan restricted Zimbabwe to 127 runs in 20 overs. Azmatullah Omarzai backed up his bowling figures of 2/10 with a solid batting performance of 34 (37) to guide take Afghanistan close.
Gulbadin Naib supported Omarzai well with a 22-run knock but it was Mohammad Nabi in the end, who stood tall and struck important and unbeaten 24* runs to help Afghanistan overcome a nervy chase and win the series 2-1.
Pitch Report and Toss
Pitch Report : It is is dry and there are grass, but there is a grass cover and should hold the surface. There might be some deviation too. It looks a good surface, batting first will work, opines Tino Mawoyo
Toss : Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan won the toss and chose to bowl with one change in the playing XI as Fazalhaq Farooqi makes a return back to the squad. Zimbabwe skipper Sikandar Raza who is happy batting first made one change in the playing XI bringing in Faraz Akram for Ryan Burl
Rashid Khan’s 4-fer and Azmatullah Omarzai’s tidy spell restricts Zimbabwe to 127 in 20 overs
It was Rashid who led another disciplined effort from the Afghanistan bowlers. Even though Naveen-ul-Haq struck early, Zimbabwe made a solid start in the powerplay to race to 41/1 after the first five overs. After Omarzai struck twice to dent their progress, Afghanistan’s spinners took charge. Mujeeb Ur Rahman picked up the key wicket of Sikandar Raza before getting rid of Wesley Madhevere and then post that, it was the Rashid Khan show.
After contributing in the T20Is against Pakistan prior to this series, Brian Bennett ended as the highest run-getter across the two sides against Afghanistan with 107 runs. He slapped and sliced Naveen-ul-Haq for fours in the third over, as Zimbabwe went on to put up 31 in four overs despite losing Tadiwanshe Marumani early after being asked to bat.
Bennett was the third to fall when he swung Azmatullah Omarzai to Naveen at deep midwicket, having hit four boundaries in his 24-ball 31. Zimbabwe were 57 for 3 one ball into the ninth over, and the slowdown had begun.
From being 78 for 3 in the 11th over, Zimbabwe found themselves at 106 for 9 after 17. Rashid bagged four of those six wickets. Despite not picking a wicket in his first two overs, Rashid came back to first trap Farid Khan lbw before stunning the home side with a three-wicket over to round off an excellent spell.
But the slide had started with Sikandar Raza running out of luck. After a leading edge went over point and a top edge fell short of fine leg in the 11th over, Raza holed out to long leg off Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
Mujeeb then had Wessly Madhevere caught for 21, after which Rashid weaved his magic. He trapped Akram in front, had Tashinga Musekiwa pulling to midwicket, saw Richard Ngarava chip to cover off a googly, and pinned Blessing Muzarabani in front. The last three of those wickets all fell in the 17th over, as Rashid finished with 4 for 27. Although Wellington Masakadza scored 17 not out and added 21 with Trevor Gwandu for the last wicket, Zimbabwe’s 127 was below par.
From 106/9 after 17 overs, Zimbabwe needed a miracle to finish with 127. Perhaps, had that middle order not caved in easily, they could have had enough in the tank to topple the T20 World Cup semi finalists.
Azmatullah Omarzai, Naib and Nabi take Afghanistan home to a 2-1 series win over Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe made a great start with the ball in their bid to make Afghanistan earn their victory. Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava reduced them to 9/2 after the first three overs and even though Rahmanullah Gurbaz hit a couple of boundaries, Zimbabwe struck again. Darwish Rasooli, half-centurion from the previous game, got a leading edge to give Muzarabani his second wicket and the visitors found themselves precariously placed at 36/3 by the end of the powerplay.
In quick time, they were reduced to 44/4 that gave Zimbabwe a real chance of pulling off a stunning win. However, Azmatullah Omarzai and Gulbadin Naib squashed those hopes with a vital 48-run stand that put the game on the platter for Afghanistan.
The over in which Akram bowled five wides went for ten runs, and Afghanistan hardly looked in trouble after that. Azmatullah Omarzai cut and pulled for boundaries during his stand with Naib, as they otherwise ticked along steadily – they added 48 for the fifth wicket, with the required rate below six runs an over.
That is when Raza turned one into Naib, and had him lbw for a run-a-ball 22. Azmatullah Omarzai and new batter Nabi kept going mostly with ones and twos – although Nabi drove Ngarava for four on one occasion – but Raza got a simple return catch from Omarzai, who scored 34 from 37 balls.
Afghanistan were left needing another 12 runs from nine balls as things got tight, but Nabi dabbed Gwandu for four behind point to settle the nerves. When he got the boundary to start the final over, bowled by Akram, victory was all but sealed.
Zimbabwe did stage a late comeback on the back of Sikandar Raza’s excellent spell that saw him remove both the set batters. Nabi then released the pressure with a much-needed boundary in the penultimate over. And even Rashid Khan’s dismissal in the same over didn’t deter him as he guided Afghanistan past the finishing line.
Afghanistan appeared to be heading for a comfortable victory at one point before a late collapse gave Zimbabwe a sniff. However, Nabi took on the responsibility in the final over with his side still needing 7 to win as he got the job done with three balls to spare.
Presentations and Road Ahead
Rashid Khan the winning skipper said : Quite happy with the win and especially with the series win. In the first game we lost but we came back really well. Our batters played well and also our boys fielded really well. It’s quite a big ground and ones and twos matter, so the key is to field well. Especially the low-scoring games are tough, you think not to lose wickets.
The partnership between Gulbadin and Azmatullah was good first and then the partnership between Azmatullah and Nabi. As a bowler it gives you lots of energy when you take wickets. The confidence is there and looking forward to the ODI series as well. 80-90 percent of the team is ODI team so we know what to do. So, this series win will give us the confidence and boost us. It will give us the momentum going into the ODI and Test series.
Sikandar Raza the loosing skipper said : I don’t think it was a wicket where you score 127, 150 was probably par. We were relying on big hits and didn’t rotate the strike enough. We have to reign in sometimes. It’s disheartening that it keeps happening again and again. The environment is quite relaxed, the dressing room atmosphere is chill. If we see our dismissals, majority of us got out due to wrong shot selections.
We were still hunting for the wickets so you saw our seamers giving it their all and the fielders also doing their best. But, 127 is never going to be enough. We tried everything we could but it didn’t work out. Those extras killed us today.
Azmatullah Omarzai Player of the Match for his all round performance in the match said : Always feel happy to get the Man of the Match award. It was tough to bat out there so I tried to keep calm and rotate strike out there. It’s not difficult because it’s my job. Whenever I get a chance, I try to give my best.
Naveen Ul Haq Player of the Series for his brilliant bowling said : (For taking 8 wickets in the series) The first couple of games were difficult (because of the conditions) but today it was easier for us as it was overcast so the ball was seaming around. The first game was difficult for us because of the different conditions. The conditions were overcast today so the ball swung for me.
Zimbabwe fought till the end but they didn’t have enough runs to play with. A few of the Zimbabwean batters got off to starts but couldn’t convert them into anything substantial. The last wicket stand of 21 helped them cross 120. In reply, Afghanistan were off to a poor start as they lost three wickets inside the powerplay. Muzarabani was especially impressive as he picked up a couple of wickets. Gurbaz looked good in his short stay but a ball that kept painfully low trapped him in front.
The visitors were in a bit of bother at 44/4 but it was always going to be a matter of one or two good partnerships. The 48-run stand for the fifth wicket between Azmatullah Omarzai and Naib put Afghanistan in the driver’s seat. After that stand was broken, there were a few nerves amongst the lower order as Zimbabwe chipped in with a couple of more wickets.
But, Nabi kept his calm, scored a few crucial boundaries, and guided his side through to a victory with three balls to spare. The fact that the Zimbabwean bowlers conceded a lot of extras was a major letdown for them.
Afghanistan were down at 45 for 4 after seven overs in their pursuit of 128 to beat Zimbabwe in the third T20I, and with that, win the series. That could have been the point at which the game went Zimbabwe’s way. But Faraz Akram then bowled an 11-ball over with five wides to give Afghanistan the breathing space they needed, and the fifth-wicket pair of Azmatullah Omarzai and Gulbadin Naib eased into the repair job.
Later, Akram’s bowling colleagues worked hard enough to dismiss Omarzai, Naib and Rashid Khan, and leave Afghanistan needing seven runs in the final over to win the game. But the first ball of the 20th, bowled again by Akram, went for four, and Mohammad Nabi wrapped the chase up with three balls remaining. A sloppy Zimbabwe eventually ended up giving away 17 extras, and have now lost all six of their bilateral T20I series against Afghanistan.
Zimbabwe showed a lot of resilience in the first game to clinch a last-ball thriller. But, they couldn’t back up that kind of performance in the last two games. Their batting majorly let them down. Also, the significant amount of extras they conceded today cost them big time. Afghanistan, on the other hand, did well to bounce back after the initial defeat. They always play with a fighting spirit and that is a big-plus in the game of cricket. The ODI series between these two sides will kickstart after a couple of days.
The Afghanistan National Cricket Team will now be gearing up for the ODI leg of the tour, which is scheduled to begin on December 17 at the same venue, with the second and third ODI matches of the series to be played on December 19 and 21, respectively.