New Delhi [India], September 17 (ANI): India completed a clean sweep of the T20I series against Afghanistan with a commanding 127-run victory in the third and final match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium here on Thursday, riding on Abhishek Sharma’s record-breaking century before Ravi Bishnoi and Nitish Kumar Reddy shared six wickets between them.
After posting a formidable 221 for seven, India bowled Afghanistan out for 94 in 14.1 overs to register their 10th win by a margin of 100 or more runs in men’s T20Is.
The 127-run defeat was Afghanistan’s heaviest in the format, while their total of 94 was their lowest against India in T20Is, eclipsing their previous lowest of 111 for eight in Dubai during the 2022 Asia Cup.
Asked to bat first, India got off to a blistering start as Abhishek Sharma took the attack to Afghanistan’s bowlers. He struck 16 runs off Azmatullah Omarzai in the second over before smashing 22 off Fazalhaq Farooqi in the next, taking India to 45 without loss.
Sanju Samson joined the assault, hitting consecutive sixes off Mohammad Nabi in the fifth over to complete 9,000 runs in T20 cricket. Abhishek brought up his half-century off just 16 balls in the same over as India raced to 85 without loss during the powerplay.
Abhishek continued his onslaught, launching Mujeeb Ur Rahman for two more sixes before reaching his third T20I century in just 31 balls against Abdullah Ahmadzai. The effort made him the fastest batter from a Test-playing nation to score a T20I hundred, surpassing the previous Indian record of 35 balls set by Rohit Sharma against Sri Lanka in 2017.
Rashid Khan ended Abhishek’s breathtaking innings in the 10th over, dismissing him for 108 off 34 balls, with nine fours and 11 sixes. India were 142 for one at the halfway stage.
Rashid then contributed to the dismissal of Tilak Varma, who was run out for two, before Samson completed his second consecutive half-century. Samson scored 50 off 35 balls, including two fours and four sixes, before Omarzai dismissed him in the 14th over.
Shreyas Iyer made 29, while Shivam Dube added 14 as India crossed the 200-run mark in the 16th over. Rashid took a sharp catch to dismiss Dube, and Afghanistan struck again late in the innings to remove Ishan Kishan (10) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1). India finished on 221 for seven, with Omarzai taking two wickets and Rashid and Abdullah claiming one apiece.
Afghanistan began their chase positively, with Rahmanullah Gurbaz and captain Ibrahim Zadran collecting 15 runs in the opening over. India, however, quickly wrested control.
Axar Patel struck twice in the fourth over, dismissing Gurbaz for 15 off 11 balls and Sediqullah Atal for a duck. Jasprit Bumrah then removed Darwish Rasooli for a golden duck, while Yash Thakur, playing his first match of the series, dismissed Zadran for 25 off 16 balls.
Afghanistan crossed 50 in the sixth over but struggled to build partnerships. Bishnoi broke the stand by dismissing Noor ul Rahman for 11 in the ninth over.
Reddy then dismantled the middle and lower order in the 12th over, removing Mohammad Nabi, Omarzai and Mujeeb Ur Rahman in quick succession. Bishnoi followed up by dismissing Rashid Khan and Abdullah Ahmadzai to wrap up the innings at 94.
Bishnoi and Reddy finished with three wickets each, while Axar claimed two. India’s emphatic win sealed the series 3-0. (ANI)
Related reading
