Right then, India will be the happier of the two sides at the halfway mark and they will be confident enough to gun down this total.
Axar Patel is down for a chat. He starts by saying that he couldn’t feel the ball during the match nor the mic in hand as the weather is pretty cold. He further talks about his bowling effort and says that they knew the weather was going to be cold and challenging but he had to only focus on what had to be done with the ball and put it in the right areas and do well for the team.
Despite failing to finish strongly with the ball, Rohit Sharma and India will be pleased with their bowling effort. There were a few lapses in the field but all in all, it was a clinical bowling display. The Indian new ball pair of Arshdeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar were spot on with their lines and lengths and did not give much away to the Afghan openers. Introduced inside the Powerplay, Axar Patel bowled with excellent control as well and kept the pressure on the opposition. Washington Sundar was expensive in his second over, but Axar Patel and Shivam Dube combined well to pick up wickets after the Powerplay to pile the misery on Afghanistan. After the drinks break, India let it slip a bit and leaked boundaries. Mukesh Kumar fought back in his last over to get rid of both set batters to wrestle the initiative back in India’s favour.
Late flourish from Najibullah Zadran and Karim Janat has taken Afghanistan to 158, their highest total against India in T20Is! 28 runs came off the last two overs to help Afghanistan end up with a competitive total on the board. After being put into bat, it was a watchful start from Afghanistan. Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmanullah Gurbaz were cautious in their approach and took their own sweet time to assess the surface. However, in the process of getting a move on, both openers perished in quick succession. Rahmat Shah could not do much either in his maiden T20I inning as Afghanistan found themselves struggling to get any momentum at the halfway mark. Mohammad Nabi and Azmatullah Omarzai then got together and provided some much-needed impetus to the Afghan innings. The duo took the attack to the opposition during the quickfire 68-run stand. Just when the visitors were starting to set themselves up for a big finish, both set batters got out in the same over. Thanks to cameos from Najibullah Zadran and Karim Janat, Afghanistan were able to cross 150 and finish on a high.
19.6 overs (4 Runs) FOUR! Arshdeep Singh nails the yorker but somehow Najibullah Zadran has squeezed it to the fence and Afghanistan end on a high as they get 15 runs off the final over. This is bowled right at the toes, Zadran stays deep in the crease and looks to jam it out but the ball goes off the inside edge and beats fine leg to his left. Afghanistan finish with 158/5 on the board!
19.5 overs (4 Runs) DROPPED AND FOUR! Excellent effort from Tilak Varma to get a hand on it but he ends up palming it into the ropes. Banged in very short and outside off, Najibullah Zadran makes a bit of room and looks to uppercut it over third man but ends up slicing it over backward point. Varma runs back from inside the ring and dives in over his shoulder getting both hands on it and the ball just pops out before going into the fence.
19.4 overs (1 Run) Full and wide again but in the slot, Karim Janat stays deep in the crease and thumps it down to long off for just a single. 150 now comes up for Afghanistan.
19.4 overs (1 Run) WIDE! A bit too full and wide this time and Karim Janat stays put as the umpire calls it a wide.
19.3 overs (0 Run) Karim Janat pre-meditates a bit and moves past the off stump. Arshdeep Singh follows him with a full and wide one that goes past the tramline. Janat looks to open the bat face and guide it away but misses.
19.2 overs (1 Run) Gets it full and right in and around the toes, Najibullah Zadran manages to get an inside edge off the pads down to fine leg for a single.
19.1 overs (4 Runs) FOUR! Put away with ease and this is now Afghanistan’s highest total against India in T20Is. Looks for the inswinging yorker from over the wicket but misses his mark and serves a full toss that angles down the leg side. Najibullah Zadran flicks it away fine enough and beats deep backward square leg for a boundary.
18.6 overs (4 Runs) FOUR! Two in a row and that deserved to be put away! Drags the length a long way and angles it well across the right-hander. Karim Janat hangs back and reaches out before slapping away well in front of square on the off side for a boundary.
18.5 overs (4 Runs) FOUR! Gets the crucial boundary away. Flatter one again from around the stumps and on the pads, Karim Janat gets a bit low and flicks it away over short fine leg for four runs.
18.4 overs (0 Run) Floats this one up full and around off stump, Karim Janat sits down for the big slog but miscues it completely back to the bowler.
18.3 overs (1 Run) Pushed through quicker onto the stumps, this is hit away down to long off for a single.
18.2 overs (0 Run) PUT DOWN! You can hardly call that one a chance but those do stick sometimes. Shortish length again around off, Najibullah Zadran rocks back and goes hard at it but miscues it flat and to the right of the bowler. Washington Sundar sticks out a right hand but fails to hold on.
18.1 overs (4 Runs) FOUR! Boy, was that timed well! Short of a length bowled around middle and off, Najibullah Zadran rocks back and just firms it back past the left of the bowler. The ball goes dead straight and into the fence.
Karim Janat makes his way out to the centre. With a left-hander at the crease in the form of Najibullah, Rohit Sharma brings Washington Sundar (2-0-18-0) back into the attack.
17.6 overs (0 Run) OUT! CAUGHT! All the extra deliveries and Mukesh Kumar ends up with a big wicket, his second of the over. Keeps coming from over the wicket and digs it in a bit short and pushes it well outside the off stump. Mohammad Nabi has to really reach for it and ends up carving it off the outer half of the bat towards deep point. Rinku Singh misjudges it a bit in the loghts but does well to dive forward and take it with both hands. Nabi departs after a fiery knock.
17.5 overs (1 Run) Leg bye! Does well to escape out of the freebie there does Mukesh Kumar. Back to over the wicket and nails the yorker around the toes. Najibullah Zadran misses the flick and the ball goes off the pads to short fine leg and they get a leg bye.
17.5 overs (1 Run) NO BALL! The second one for the over and this time it will be a no ball instead of a wide. Comes from around the wicket and digs it in well short again this time outside off. Najibullah Zadran tries to uppercut it but misses out and a Free Hit will now follow.
17.5 overs (1 Run) WIDE! A well-directed bumper by Mukesh Kumar around the helmet but this one is just a bit too short and flies over the head instead. Called a wide.
17.4 overs (1 Run) Full and wide, hovering around the tramline at 137.8 clicks, Mohammad Nabi reaches out and the ball pings off his bat straight to deep point. Only a single.
17.3 overs (1 Run) Back of a length over middle and leg, Najibullah Zadran backs away a bit and plays it nicely off the back foot through cover-point for a single.
17.2 overs (0 Run) Dug in well short and over leg stump, coming it right around the shoulder, Najibullah Zadran hangs back and drops it down just behind point.
Najibullah Zadran is the new man in for Afghanistan.
17.1 overs (0 Run) OUT! DRAGGED ON! A bit unlucky for Azmatullah Omarzai but Mukesh Kumar will take it with both hands. Pitches this one full and wide outside off at 133.7 clicks and it is there to be put away. Omarzai doesn’t quite move his feet and just tries to reach out with those long levers and cream it through covers but ends up getting a big inside edge. The ball chops back into the stumps and the bails come off. Omarzai departs after a good knock and India get a timely wicket.
16.6 overs (1 Run) In the blockhole again on middle and leg, Azmatullah Omarzai uses his wrists and plays a whippy shot to deep mid-wicket for just another single. A very tidy over from Arshdeep Singh.
16.5 overs (1 Run) Nice and full at the stumps, Mohammad Nabi whips it away toward deep mid-wicket and picks up a single. They think about two but rightly decide against it.
16.5 overs (1 Run) WIDE! Goes full and wide now and Mohammad Nabi tries to shuffle across and get some bat on it but the ball just goes beyond the tramline and the umpire signals a wide.
16.4 overs (1 Run) Very full and in the blockhole on leg stump, Azmatullah Omarzai jams it out well in front of mid-wicket and picks up a single to the deep.
16.3 overs (0 Run) Excellent change-up from Arshdeep Singh! Brings out the slower bumper and bowls it over off stump and gets the height correct as well. The ball angles away and Azmatullah Omarzai looks to play at it but he is beaten.
16.2 overs (1 Run) Very full, in fact, a low full toss around off stump, difficult to put away and Mohammad Nabi toe-ends it down to long on for a run.
16.1 overs (0 Run) Begins the new spell with a hard length delivery that is angled well across the right-hander. Mohammad Nabi tries to open up the off side and cut is away but is beaten by the pace and bounce.
15.6 overs (1 Run) Nails the yorker-length delivery outside off, Mohammad Nabi makes a bit of room and opens the bat face to squeeze it down to third man for a single.
15.5 overs (0 Run) Misses out there Mohammad Nabi! A juicy high full toss around off stump, Nabi hangs back in the crease and fails to get under it, hitting it straight to mid off.
15.4 overs (6 Runs) SIX! Two in two for ‘The President’! Mukesh Kumar drops the length short again with no pace angling into the right-hander. Mohammad Nabi covers the line and pulls it handsomely over deep mid-wicket for another six.
15.3 overs (6 Runs) SIX! That’s huge. Mukesh Kumar drops his length short and outside off. Mohammad Nabi waits for the ball and slaps it over extra cover for a biggie.
15.2 overs (1 Run) Tries to go for the yorker, but turned out to be a low full-toss on off. Azmatullah Omarzai flicks it on the full to long on for a single and the 50-run stand comes up between these two as well.
15.1 overs (1 Run) Comes from over the wicket and drops the length short, outside off, Mohammad Nabi tries to play it across the line but gets the toe end of the bat. The ball zips past the off stump and trickles down to the left of the keeper. The batters pinch a single.
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