T20 World Cup, Afghanistan humble Namibia: Records broken
Afghanistan bounced back in the T20 World Cup by beating Namibia in the afternoon game at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium. They defended 160, with fast bowlers doing the trick this time. The likes of Naveen-ul-Haq and Hamid Hassan starred in the wickets column. It was a perfect farewell game for the former Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan, who has retired from all forms of cricket.
How did the match pan out?
Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Shahzad were on the charge right from ball one after Afghanistan elected to bat. The duo added 53 for the opening wicket before the former departed. Mohammad Nabi's (32*) unbeaten cameo powered Afghanistan to 160/5 in 20 overs. Naveen-ul-Haq made early inroads in the Namibia batting line-up. Hassan and Gulbadin Naib chipped in too as Namibia were restricted to 98/9.
Asghar retires as the most successful skipper in T20Is
Asghar played his final innings in international cricket. He made a brisk 31 off 23 balls with the help of 3 fours and 1 six. Asghar retires as the most successful skipper in T20 Internationals. Under Asghar, Afghanistan won 43 out of 52 T20Is (lost 9). He broke MS Dhoni's record of winning 42 matches for India in the format, earlier this year.
First Afghanistan batter to complete 2,000 runs in T20Is
Senior opener Mohammad Shahzad gave Afghanistan a perfect start. He scored 45 off 35 balls (3 fours and 2 sixes). In the process, Shahzad became the first-ever Afghanistan batter to complete 2,000 runs in T20Is. The destructive opener now has 2,011 runs from 68 matches at an average of 30.93. Shahzad also has a ton in the format.
Afghanistan maintain their dominance in T20Is
It is interesting to note that no team has successfully chased down 160+ against Afghanistan in T20Is since the start of 2016. Notably, Afghanistan defended 190 in their opening Super 12 game against Scotland. They bundled out Scotland for just 60.
A look at the other records
Afghanistan fast bowlers Naveen-ul-Haq and Hamid Hassan took three wickets apiece, while Gulbadin Naib finished with two. This is first time that Afghanistan pacers have taken eight wickets in a T20I. They had taken seven wickets in an innings on two occasions previously. Meanwhile, Namibia registered their second-lowest T20I total. The lowest remains 96 (vs Netherlands, Dubai, 2019).
