‘Ek cricket hi bacha tha unke paas wo khushi bhi cheen liya’, fans react as Afghanistan register first ever series victory against Pakistan

Rashid Khan-led Afghanistan defeats Pakistan by 7 wickets in the second T20I to register a historic series win. This victory led Afghanistan to take an unassailable lead of 2-0 in three-match T20I series against Shadab Khan’s Men in Green. Wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz shone with the bat for the Afghans as they chased 131 runs in the last over of the game.

Earlier, after winning the toss, Pakistan skipper Shadab Khan opted to bat first. The decision didn’t go well with the team as they lost two wickets in the first three balls of the game. Opener Saim Ayub was dismissed for a silver duck by Fazal Farooqi on the second ball of the first over. On the very next ball, Abdullah Shafique was dismissed for a Golden duck, registering his fourth consecutive duck in T20Is. With these early breakthroughs, Afghanistan pushed Pakistan way back in the game as they were two down without scoring anything.

Pakistan further failed to handle the pressure and kept losing wickets. They were restricted to 63 runs after losing five wickets in 11 overs. However, allrounder Imad Wasim held an end and tried to rescue his team. Wasim, along with skipper Shadab, added 67 runs for the sixth wicket. Their partnership helped Pakistan to put a competitive total on board. Wasim, in his well-made innings, scored 64 runs off 57 balls, while Shadab smashed 38 runs off 25 balls.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz led Afghanistan to a comfortable win

Although Chasing 131 was not looking easy on the slow track of Sharjah Cricket Ground, Afghani openers added 30 quick runs for the first wicket. Opener Usman Ghani departed after scoring 7 runs in nine balls. After his departure, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, along with Ibrahim Zadran, hammered Pakistani bowlers and added 56 runs for second wickets. Rahmanullah, in his innings, scored 44 runs off 49 balls, while Zadran scored 38 off 40 balls.

Afghanistan needed 22 runs to win in the last two overs when allrounders Mohammed Nabi and Najibullah Zadran finished the game for them. They hammered 17 runs including two sixes off Naseem Shah in the 19th over. This settled the game for the Afghani boys as they clinched the game on the second last ball of the match. Meanwhile, fans reacted to Afghanistan’s historic victory. A Twitter user said, “Afghanistan is rising hope politics don’t affect them.”

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