Ton-up Shahzad powers Afghanistan to healthy total
DUBAI: Burly opener Mohammad Shahzad knocked a scintillating hundred to lift Afghanistan to 252-8 in their inconsequential Super-Four game against India in the Asia Cup in Dubai on Tuesday.
The 31-year-old wicket-keeper/batsman smashed seven sixes and 11 fours in his 116-ball 124 — the right-hander’s fifth one-day century but first against a top nation — to help Afghanistan post a challenging total after they won the toss and batted at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
With India already in Friday’s final and Afghanistan out of contention, Shahzad’s knock spiced up the dead-rubber fixture. So dominant was Shahzad that fellow opener Javed Ahmadi was only five in a stand of 65, before India struck four times within the space of 17 runs.
Left-arm spinners Ravindra Jadeja (3-46) and Kuldeep Yadav (2-38) derailed the innings but Shahzad held one end, adding 50 for the fifth wicket with Gulbadin Naib who made 15 and another 48 for the sixth with Mohammad Nabi.
Nabi made a fiery 56-ball 64 with four sixes and three fours.
Shahzad was finally out — caught in the deep — in the 38th over but by then had given a good platform to his team.
India made a number of changes as they opted to rest skipper Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal with Mahendra Singh Dhoni taking over as captain and leading the team for the 200th time in a One-day International.
Scoreboard
AFGHANISTAN:
M. Shahzad c Karthik b Jadhav 124
Javed Ahmadi st Dhoni b Jadeja 5
Rahmat Shah b Jadeja 3
Hashmatullah st Dhoni b Kuldeep 0
Asghar Afghan b Kuldeep 0
Gulbadin Naib c Jadhav b Chahar 15
M. Nabi c Kuldeep b Khaleel 64
Najibullah Zadran lbw b Jadeja 20
Rashid Khan not out 12
Aftab Alam not out 2
EXTRAS (LB-1, W-5, NB-1) 7
TOTAL (for eight wkts, 50 overs) 252
FALL OF WKTS: 1-65, 2-81, 3-82, 4-82, 5-132, 6-180, 7-226, 8-244.
DID NOT BAT: Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
BOWLING: Khaleel Ahmed 10-1-45-1 (1w); Chahar 4-0-37-1 (1nb, 2w); Kaul 9-0-58-0 (1w); Jadeja 10-1-46-3 (1w); Kuldeep Yadav 10-0-38-2; Jadhav 7-0-27-1.
INDIA: K.L. Rahul, A.T. Rayudu, M.K. Pandey, K.D. Karthik, M.S. Dhoni, K.M. Jadhav, R.A. Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, D.L. Chahar, S. Kaul.
UMPIRES: G.O. Brathwaite (West Indies) and Anisur Rahman (Bangladesh).
TV UMPIRE: R.J. Tucker (Australia).
MATCH REFEREE: A.J. Pycroft (Zimbabwe).
Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2018