T20I tri-series: Afghanistan beat UAE by 38 runs 

Sharjah (Web Desk): Afghanistan defeated United Arab Emirates (UAE) by 38 runs in the T20I tri-series clash at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday.

The UAE, chasing a challenging target of 189 runs, managed to reach only 150 for 8 despite impressive half-centuries from captain Muhammad Waseem and wicketkeeper Rahul Chopra.

The UAE started their innings well, reaching 76 for 1 after eight overs with Waseem and Ethan D’Souza at the crease.

However, the momentum shifted when Rashid Khan dismissed D’Souza lbw on the first ball of the ninth over. Waseem, who top-scored with a commanding 67 off 37 balls, featuring 10 boundaries including six sixes, was dismissed by Sharafuddin Ashraf in the following over. After his wicket, UAE’s batting lineup crumbled, losing wickets rapidly and restricting their total to 150 for 8. Rahul Chopra remained unbeaten, scoring 52 runs off 35 deliveries with three fours and three sixes, but it wasn’t enough to save the innings.

For Afghanistan, Rashid Khan and Sharafuddin Ashraf took three wickets each, while Fazalhaq Farooqi and Mohammad Nabi contributed with one wicket apiece. Batting first, Afghanistan posted a strong total of 188 for 4 in their 20 overs, thanks largely to a steady second-wicket partnership between Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmanullah Atal.

Afghanistan’s innings began with a setback when opening batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz was dismissed for seven runs by Muhammad Rohid early in the fourth over, leaving the team at 16 runs. Zadran then joined Atal, and together they rebuilt the innings with an 84-run partnership off just 55 balls. Atal was eventually dismissed in the 13th over for 54 runs, hitting four fours and three sixes. Zadran continued to anchor the innings and added a brief 20-run partnership with Darwish Rasooli before Rasooli fell for 10 runs.

Following this, Azmatullah Omarzai and Zadran combined to push Afghanistan past the 150-run mark with a 40-run stand until Zadran was out in the 18th over. Zadran finished as the highest scorer for Afghanistan with 63 runs off 40 balls, including three fours and four sixes. Omarzai and Karim Janat then ensured a strong finish with an unbeaten 28-run partnership despite Junaid Siddique conceding just four runs in the final over.

For the UAE, Saghir Khan and Muhammad Rohid took two wickets each, while the rest of the bowlers, including Junaid Siddique—who missed the chance to reach 100 T20I wickets by just one—went wicketless. This win marked Afghanistan’s first in the tri-series, moving them to second place on the points table with two points from two matches, while UAE remained at the bottom after losing both of their opening games.