Bangladesh chased down Afghanistan’s total of 151 with 4 wickets in hand and 8 balls to spare in the opening T20 match of the three-match series. Opener Tanzeed Hasan and Parvez Hossain laid a strong foundation with an opening partnership of 109 runs, both scoring fifties.
At one stage, Bangladesh were struggling at 118/6, thanks to a brilliant spell from Rashid Khan, who picked up 4 wickets in two consecutive overs. However, a resilient unbeaten seventh-wicket partnership between Nurul Hasan and Rishad Hossain added 35 runs off just 18 balls, steering Bangladesh to a comfortable victory.
The match ended well before the final over. In the 19th over, Azmatullah Omarzai bowled, and Nurul Hasan smashed a six off the second ball over third man, followed by singles and another boundary from Rishad Hossain, finishing the chase at 153/6 with 8 balls remaining.
Bangladesh had a dream start with 109 runs in the first 11 overs without losing a wicket. However, after the departure of the openers, the innings stumbled, with six top-order batters falling within 9 runs. It seemed Afghanistan might stage a comeback, but the late flourish from Nurul and Rishad ensured Bangladesh claimed the win, marking a victorious start to the series. The second T20 will be played on Friday.
Earlier, Afghanistan set a target of 152 for Bangladesh. After winning the toss and electing to bat, Afghanistan lost four wickets within the powerplay. Following the dismissal of the opening pair by Nasum Ahmed, the team lost two more wickets inside 40 runs. Najibullah Zadran scored a team-high 15, while Atal was dismissed for 10 by Tanzim Sakin. Darwish fell after a mix-up while running, and Mohammad Ishaq managed just 1 run.
Gurbaz and Azmatullah tried to stabilize the innings, but Omarzai’s 18-run cameo and other contributions were not enough to push the total higher. Gurbaz remained the most reliable batsman for Afghanistan, scoring 40 runs before falling to a catch by Rishad Hossain off Tanzim Sakin’s bowling.
In the 18th over, Mohammad Nabi struck three sixes in the first four balls but was caught by Rishad Hossain on the fifth. Afghanistan reached 125 by then, hoping for a total around 160.
However, the lower order could not add significant runs, and Afghanistan were eventually all out for 151.
Mohammad Nabi scored 38 runs off 25 balls, including three sixes and four boundaries. Rashid Khan made just 4 runs before being dismissed by Mustafizur Rahman’s slower delivery. Sharafuddin Ashraf added a quick 16 off 11 balls to take Afghanistan to their final total of 151.
