Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report RAWALPINDI:-Defending champions Pakhtunkhwa recorded their second win in as many matches with a two-run victory over Northern in a last-ball thriller at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are locked on four points with table toppers Sindh following today’s win, while Northern are positioned fifth, just above Central Punjab who are also yet to register a win. Earlier in the day, Southern Punjab recorded their first win of the Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 with a 21-run win over Balochistan. With one win each now, Balochistan and Southern Punjab are standing at third and fourth positions. Captain Khalid Usman bowls Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to win Northern needed 160 to win and their opener Hasan Nawaz (38 off 25) looked on course to hand them their first win, but Khalid Usman’s off-spin put a dent in their hopes as he accounted for Nasir Nawaz and Hasan in the fifth and ninth overs to reduce the batting side to 53 for three. What further hurt Northern was Khalid’s discipline – half of his 24 deliveries were dots as he finished with terrific figures of two for 16. Rohail Nazir (24 off 29) and Ali Imran (31 off 27) ignited hopes with a 48-run stand off 41 balls, but the partnership ended at the end of the 15th over with Rohail’s dismissal and five balls later Ali followed him to the pavilion. Aamir Jamal’s 29 not out off 15 lifted Northern’s scoring rate towards the backend of the innings and with 15 required off the last six, he brought his side closer to the win, but Mohammad Imran defended the target. Sahibzada Farhan was the star of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s innings with a 45-ball 53 (two fours and three sixes) and was duly supported by wicketkeeper Mohammad Haris (33 off 27) from the other end. The opening pair put 83 runs in the first 10 overs that set the tone for the last 10 overs. Mohammad Sarwar Afridi, in the middle order, made 24 off 20, while Khalid contributed 19 off 14. Usman Khan Shinwari and Salman Irshad returned three for 26 and three for 38. Sharoon, Ilyas blast Southern Punjab to comfortable win Southern Punjab looked down and out for the most part of their innings following their captain’s decision to bat as they were six down for only 80 in 14 overs before a blistering partnership between player of the match Sharoon Siraj and Mohammad Ilyas turned the game on its head as Southern Punjab set 157 for Balochistan. The two added 76 runs to the team’s total at a rate of more than two runs per ball. Sharoon scored 57 not out off 49 in which he struck six fours and two sixes. But it was Ilyas’ whirlwind 41 off 17 – in which he smashed four sixes and two fours – that lifted Southern Punjab to 156 for six. Yasir Shah, the Balochistan captain, was economical and made regular inroads, finishing with three for 17. His scalps were Sohaib Maqsood, Moinuddin and Muhammad Imran. Balochistan’s run chase was off to a flying start with Haseebullah (21 off 22) and Asad Shafiq (43 off 35) adding 57 in 8.2 overs. But, once Salman Ali Agha, the Southern Punjab captain, accounted for Haseebullah in the ninth over, the match started to slip from Balochistan’s grasp. Young left-arm wrist spinner Faisal Akram sent Asad back to the pavilion in the next over. Salman then accounted for Abdul Wahid Bangalzai and Shan Masood in the 13th over to reduce the batting side to 82 for four. With 30 off 25, Hussain Talat showed some resistance down the order, but pacer Sameen Gul ensured that Balochistan never got back in the game with his dismissals of hard-hitting Amad Butt and Hussain. Scores in brief: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa beat Northern by 2 runs Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 159-8, 20 overs (Sahibzada Farhan 53, Mohammad Haris 33, Mohammad Sarwar Afridi 24; Usman Khan Shinwari 3-26, Salman Irshad 3-38) Northern 157-5, 20 overs (Hasan Nawaz 38, Ali Imran 31, Aamir Jamal 29 not out, Rohail Nazir 24; Khalid Usman 2-16) Player of the match – Khalid Usman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) Southern Punjab beat Balochistan by 21 runs Southern Punjab 156-6, 20 overs (Sharoon Siraj 57 not out, Mohammad Ilyas 41 not out; Yasir Shah 3-17, Akif Javed 2-53) Balochistan 135-8, 20 overs (Asad Shafiq 43, Hussain Talat 30, Haseebullah 21; Salman Ali Agha 3-15, Sameen Gul 2-26) Player of the match – Sharoon Siraj (Southern Punjab) Friday’s fixtures Balochistan v Sindh starts at 0930 Central Punjab v Southern Punjab starts at 1345

BIPIN DANI The UAE's 19-year-old slow left-arm orthodox bowler Jash Giyanani has got a chance to bowl at the leading batters in nets here in Dubai. According to him, Sri Lanka's Bhanuka Rajapaksa was "more difficult" to bowl to. Speaking exclusively, he says, ``Rajapaksa was one batter who was difficult to bowl to because of his fast hands and him being left-handed. I had a conversation with Praveen Jaywickrama who is the left-arm spinner from this country". "I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to bowl to players I have grown up watching. I'm very grateful to be able to do so". In the Indian nets, he could not bowl to Virat Kohli but watched Kohli training. "His energy level is remarkable and special amongst the players that I did get to bowl to. Suryakumar Yadav was my favorite", he added. Jash Giyanani got the opportunity to bowl in the nets because he is an ICC Academy Scholar (Elite batch). In the match against Bangladesh, Sri Lankan captain Dasun Shanaka's wife Chevanthi will also be present on Thursday. She is the only player's wife present on this tour. Chevanthi, however, is not staying in the team hotel but at her sister's place in Dubai, one can confirm.

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-India’s Hardik Pandya has leaped eight slots to a career-best fifth place for allrounders in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings following his heroics with bat and ball against Pakistan in their Asia Cup clash on Sunday. He took three wickets for 25 runs and scored an unbeaten 33 from just 17 deliveries to help his side to victory by five wickets with two balls to spare, racking up 167 rating points as he went. On the opposing side, Mohammad Rizwan’s 42-ball knock of 43 saw him join his captain, Babar Azam, in the top two of the batters’ rankings with 796 rating points. Azam is still at the helm with 810 rating points. In the other two matches of the tournament, Afghanistan’s explosive start has seen several of their players make significant gains in the batters and bowlers lists. Openers, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Najibullah Zadran have climbed their way to 14th, 29th and 30th place respectively after their emphatic wins by eight and seven wickets against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Rashid Khan has moved two slots to number three in the bowlers' list with 708 rating points after taking three for 22 against Bangladesh, while Mujeeb Ur Rahman returns to the top 10 with a seven-slot leap to number nine on 660 points. In the United Kingdom, Ben Stokes advances three spaces to take second place for allrounders with 360 rating points in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings following their series-levelling, innings defeat over South Africa in the second Test match at Old Trafford. He climbs nine slots to reach 18th place with 668 rating points for batters and five slots to close at number 38 and 540 points in the bowlers' list. James Anderson is back in the top five after moving one spot from sixth place at 882 points after his combined six wickets for 62 runs in the match, while Stuart Broad slides one up to 13th at 713 rating points. Ollie Robinson goes up four places to 26th with 603 rating points to round them off. South Africa’s speedster, Anrich Nortje, was the most notable advancement in the bowlers' list from the opposition, rising three slots to 22nd with 628 rating points. Finally, in Townsville, Mitchell Starc took three for 24 in eight overs during Australia’s One-Day International (ODI) series opener against Zimbabwe, moving one slot in the bowlers' list to 15th place in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings. Glen Maxwell and Steve Smith have also moved one place each for their 18th and 19th positions in the batters list. Josh Hazlewood jumped three spaces to 25th in the all-rounders' list with 187 rating points. Zimbabwe’s Richard Ngarava and Victor Nyauchi advance 14 and nine spots to reach 106 and 183rd place in the bowlers' list, while the home side’s Cameron Green surged 82 slots for his position at 182 after taking his maiden ODI five-wicket haul in the match. 

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-Both India and Pakistan have been fined 40 percent of their match fees for maintaining a slow over-rate in their Group A match of the Asia Cup on Sunday, 28 August. Jeff Crowe of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees imposed the sanctions after Rohit Sharma and Babar Azam’s sides were ruled to be two overs short of their respective targets after time allowances were taken into consideration. In accordance with Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to minimum over-rate offences, players are fined 20 per cent of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time. Both captains pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed sanction, so there was no need for a formal hearing. On-field umpires Masudur Rahman and Ruchira Pilliyaguruge, third umpire Raveendra Wimalasiri and fourth umpire Gazi Sohel levelled the charges.

Abdul Jabbar Faisal RAWALPINDI:-A 92-run innings by Saim Ayub encouraged Sindh's bowlers to restrict their opponents Northern batters at 180 runs in 20 overs, as they were chasing 191 runs target in the third game of National T20 Cricket Cup 2022 at Pindi Cricket Stadium on Wednesday. Acting captain of Northern Ali Imran won the toss and put opposition into bat, as the weather for the game of cricket was beautiful in the empty stadium of Pindi. Sindh managed 190 runs for 7 on the board in allotted 20 overs. Saim Ayub was top scorer with 92 runs. Saim Ayub plunder the runs with massive hitting, as he smashed six four and seven sixes during his 52 balls innings. Saad Khan contributed 26 runs not out while Saud Shakil scored 20 runs in 18 balls to set 191 target for the home town cricketers. Sohail Tenvir snared three batters with his magical bowling after conceding 28 runs in his 4 overs. Usman Shinvari, Mehran, Salman and Aamir shared one wicket each. Northern batters could aggregate 180 for runs in 20 overs, as they were just 10 runs behind their target. Nasir Nawaz was the best scorer of the Northern with 39 runs in 21 balls innings. Mubasir Khan scored 33 was the other notable performance. Mir Hamza (3 for 33), Sohail Khan (2 for 38) and Saim Ayub (1 for 26) were the wicket-takers for Sindh. Saim Ayub claimed player of the match award. Summarized Scorecard: Sindh beat Northern by 10 runs Toss: Northern won the toss and decided to bowl first Sindh Batting: (190 for 7 in 20 overs) Saim Ayub 92 runs (52 balls, 4X6, 6X7), Saad Khan 26 not out (17 balls, 4X2, 6X1), Saud Shakil 20 runs (18 balls, 4X0, 6X1) Northern Bowling: Sohail Tenvir (3 for 28), Usman Shenvari (1 for 36), Mehran Mumtaz (1 for 32), Salman Irshad (1 for 32), Aamir Jamal (1 for 32) Northern Batting: (180 for 7 in 20 overs) Nasir Nawaz 39 runs (21 balls, 4X6, 6X1), Mubasir Khan 33 runs (25 balls, 4X4, 6X1), Zeeshan Malik 29 runs (31 balls, 4X2) Sindh Bowling: Mir Hamza (3 for 33), Sohail Khan (2 for 38), Saim Ayub (1 for 26) Player of Match: Saim Ayub (Sindh). Day-2 (Game-II): KP beat Central Punjab by 18 runs Summarized Scorecard: Toss: KP won the toss and elected to bat KP Batting (165 for 6 in 20 overs): Kamran Ghulam 39 runs (32 balls, 4X6, 6X1), Mohammad Sarwar 30 runs (31 balls, 4X4), Adim Amin 24 runs (17 balls, 4X2, 6x1) Central Punjab Bowling: Ali Asfand (2 for 22), Usman Mir (1 for 27), A denial (1 for 40) Central Punjab Batting: Tayyab Tahir 72 (45 balls, 4X5, 6X3), Ahmed Shahzad 26 runs (20 balls, 4X5), Juniad runs 18 (14 balls, 4X3) KP Bowling: Imran Khan Senior (4 for 24), Asif Afridai (2 for 24), Irshad Iqbal (1 for 20)

Smita Chhetri is the only woman team manager in Asia Cup BIPIN DANI Hong Kong is the only team participating in the ongoing Asia Cup in the United Arabs Emirates (UAE) has woman manager. The team is being managed by former cricketer Smita Chhetri. Incidentally, she is managing the media here too. Speaking exclusively, she said, "Managing men’s national team is one of the best opportunity, which I got from Cricket Hong Kong. So far I do not see much challenge managing them as I have known them for long time and we get along very well. I try to stay strict with them when during match and trainings but otherwise we have fun and pull our legs more". "I wouldn’t say it’s very easy to manage men’s team but it’s not difficult as well. I am very experienced with high performance logistics behind the scenes and being manager for the same for the first time has been extraordinary experience. Sometimes I fall behind managing time between usual team managers duties and at the same time coordinating with media but I won’t complain because I am having so much fun". I had played for women’s U19 in 2008 and followed by T20s being a manager and player is totally different. As a player we only had responsibilities to play, eat and have fun. We were very young that time as well. When I look back and compare now, I am very thankful to Cricket HK for amazing opportunity. Its equally fun to travel as a player and manage the team", the 32-yearold Nepal-born Smita signed off. Later, Ravi Nagdev, the Cricket HK General Manager, speaking from HK, added, "She is a bright, responsible and hard working young woman. I think she has all qualities that it takes to be a team manager. The gender even does not come into the picture".

Abdul Jabbar Faisal RAWALPINDI:-Sindh and Balochistan have registered victories on the opening day of the National T20 Cricket Cup 2022 after thrashing Southern Punjab and Central Punjab respectively by 42 and 2 runs at Pindi Cricket Stadium Rawalpindi on Tuesday. In the first match of the day, Sindh’s Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowlers inspired their side to a commanding win over Southern Punjab. A fighting 42 off 32 by player of the match Sarfaraz Ahmed and a dominant show with the ball saw Sindh defeat Balochistan comprehensively in the tournament opener. Southern Punjab opted to chase after winning the toss and kept Sindh’s scoring rate in check with wickets at regular intervals as Sindh exhausted all their batters and managed 147 with two balls spare. Openers Sharjeel Khan (24 off 19) and Saim Ayub (30 off 20) added 38 runs together before the former was undone by leg-spinner Ali Majid. Wicketkeeper-batter Sarfaraz walked in the middle with three wickets down for 73 in the 10th over and made his experience count. He cracked six fours and scored at a strike rate of 131. Over the course of his innings, Sarfaraz batted with the tail and was his side’s last wicket to fall when he was caught off Sameen Gul, who returned the innings’ best figures of three for 24. Pacer Mohammad Ilyas was the other bowler to account for three batters. He sent Omair Bin Yousuf, Sohail Khan and Danish Aziz back to the pavilion and gave away 29 in his four. Left-arm wrist spinner Faisal Akram returned two for 26. Southern Punjab were never really in the run chase and were bowled out for a paltry 105 in 16.4 overs. They lost their top three inside the powerplay and were three down for 29 in just 5.3 overs with Sohail Khan, Anwar Ali and Danish Aziz accounting for Zain Abbas, Zeeshan Ashraf and Sohaib Maqsood. Their problems were amplified in the ninth over with leg-spinner Zahid Mehmood accounting for Salman Ali Agha and Moinuddin in the space of four balls. Danish Aziz took his second wicket in the 12th over by sending Mohammad Imran back. The only notable batting performance in the run chase came from Sharoon Siraj, who struck 36 off 27. In the second match of the day, all-rounder Irfan Khan Niazi, a product of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s age-group programme, led Central Punjab’s fightback and had his side in touching distance of the win with four needed off the last ball after the last over began with 19 remaining. He had arrived at the crease with 127 required off 64 with established players in Ahmed Shehzad (17 off 19) and Abdullah Shafique (15 off 18), and former U19 captain Qasim Akram (13 off nine) back in the pavilion, and added 61 with Tayyab Tahir (51 off 33) and 41 with Faheem Ashraf (18 off eight). It was the stand between Tayyab – who struck seven fours and a six – and Irfan that proved to be pivotal as they scored 61 at 9.38 runs per over, before Faheem and Irfan added 41 at a blistering 15 runs per over. Irfan, who shared the player of the match award with Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, smashed three sixes and as many as fours. Balochistan’s Wahid and Shan Masood hammered 54 each to help Balochistan post a towering 186 for four after their captain Yasir Shah elected to bat. The two had come together in the fourth over with 36 on board following the dismissals of Haseebullah and Asad Shafiq on back-to-back deliveries. Asad and Haseebullah promised a good start as the two kept the run rate hovering around 10 an over. Asad, especially, looked in solid touch as he hit 23 runs (five fours) at a strike rate of over 191. Wahid and Shan added 111 runs together at the average of eight runs per over, blasting 13 boundaries between them. Wahid, who scored at over 138, sent four deliveries flying above the boundary rope and dispatched three off the 39 he faced for fours, while Shan, who scored at exactly 150, struck six fours in his 36-ball knock. Ahmed Daniyal took all four of Balochistan’s wickets. Scores in brief: Match 1 - Sindh beat Southern Punjab by 42 runs Sindh 147 all out, 19.4 overs (Sarfaraz Ahmed 42, Saim Ayb 30, Sharjeel Khan 24; Sameen Gul 3-24, Mohammad Ilyas 3-29, Faisal Akram 2-26) Southern Punjab 105 all out, 16.4 overs (Sharoon Siraj 36; Sohail Khan 3-15, Danish Aziz 2-22, Zahid Mehmood 2-26) Player of the match – Sarfaraz Ahmed (Sindh) Match 2 – Balochistan beat Central Punjab by 2 runs Balochistan 186-4, 20 overs (Shan Masood 54, Abdul Wahid Bangalzai 54, Asad Shafiq 23, Amad Butt 21; Ahmed Daniyal 4-28) Central Punjab 184-5, 20 overs (Irfan Khan Niazi 57 not out, Tayyab Tahir 51; Amad Butt 3-29) Player of the match – Abdul Wahid Bangalzai (Balochistan) and Irfan Khan Niazi (Central Punjab) Wednesday’s fixtures: 0930 - Northern v Sindh 1400 - Central Punjab v Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-Ireland Women’s batter, Gaby Lewis, has risen six places to a career-best number 27 in the latest MRF Tyres ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings. The move comes after Ireland’s dominant, outbound tour success against the Netherlands, where her side returned three emphatic wins to end the series unbeaten. The visitors made a strong showing with the bat in hand, Lewis making scores of 92 from 98 deliveries and 25 from 32 as she helped her side to victory by eight and five wickets respectively in the first and last matches of the series. Thanks to these dazzling performances at the crease, she now celebrates her career-best ratings points tally of 494. Leah Paul and captain Laura Delany, returned maiden ODI centuries in the second fixture of the series, becoming the first pair to score hundreds in the same innings for Ireland Women. In that team-record-tumbling match, Ireland set their highest women’s team total in ODIs of 337 for eight. The 236-run, third-wicket partnership between the pair was also the highest of any wicket in Irish women’s cricket, with Paul’s 137 from 138 deliveries the highest individual score in Ireland Women’s ODIs. If that wasn’t enough, their eventual, 210-run triumph was the team’s highest winning margin by runs in women’s ODIs. The pair make strong gains in the batters’ rankings, Delany rising 15 spots to a career-best 34th place with 455 rating points, while Paul shoots up 25 slots to 56th on 346 points. In addition, they rise to 66th and 71st respectively in the bowlers’ rankings with 280 and 266 points and in the allrounders list, Delany once again leads the charge, advancing 15 positions to 28th place, with Paul following with her own 25-place jump to share 36th spot with India’s Shikha Pandey. The final notable Irish team mention goes to Cara Murray, whose maiden five-wicket-haul (five for 39) in the same record-breaking match, saw her rise by 12 spaces to 60th in the bowlers’ rankings, with 321 rating points. While it was a losing series for the Netherlands, there were some individual gains to celebrate. Captain Babette de Leede leads the rankings advancements with a 91-slot catapult to number 120 in the batters’ rankings with 175 ratings points, thanks to her 76 from 98 balls in the series opener. Iris Zwilling advances from 144th place to 81st for bowlers and Frederique Overdijk was the all-round star with two unbeaten scores of 47 (88) and 38 (65) in the first and last matches and helpful contributions with the ball in hand. She rises 18 places to 97th spot in the batters’ rankings, while also moving 58 spots up to 116th place in the bowlers’ rankings and 61 places to number 93 in the all-rounders list.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE:-The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced the ticket prices for the seven-match T20I series between Pakistan and England to be played in Karachi from 20-25 September and 28 September to 2 October in Lahore. Ticket prices for the Karachi matches have been fixed from PKR1,500 to PKR250. The PCB has already announced gate proceeds from the first T20I will be donated to the Prime Minister’s Flood Relief Fund 2022. Likewise, affordable prices have been fixed for the Lahore T20Is, which now range from PKR3,000 to PKR500. When Australia played a T20I here on 5 April, ticket prices ranged from PKR4,000 to PKR500. Usman Waheed, Director – Commercial said: “England is visiting Pakistan for the first time in 17 years and these matches will be a build-up to October’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. To ensure maximum fans can attend these matches and watch live some of the best shortest format cricketers from either side, we have decided to make the tickets affordable, ensuring families also turn up in big numbers to support cricket and both the sides. “The first T20I also presents an opportunity to all the Karachi cricket spectators and fans to play their part in supporting all those affected by the catastrophe caused by the monsoon rainfall and floods. They can do this by purchasing tickets and helping the PCB to donate a substantial amount in the Prime Minister’s Flood Relief Fund. Cricket unites our nation and this is a time to demonstrate that we stand together in these difficult and challenging times.” Ticket prices of Karachi T20Is Fazal Mahmood, Hanif Mohammad, Javed Miandad (VIP enclosure) – PKR1,500 Imran Khan, Quaid, Wasim Akram (premium enclosure) – PKR750 Asif Iqbal, Intikhab Alam, Iqbal Qasim, Mohammad Brothers, Nasimul Ghani (first-class enclosures) – PKR500 Majid Khan, Waqar Hasan, Wasim Bari, Zaheer Abbas (general enclosure) – PKR250 Ticket prices for Lahore T20Is: Fazal Mahmood, Imran Khan (VIP enclosures) – PKR3,000 Rajas and Saeed Anwar (premium enclosures) – PKR1,500 Abdul Qadir, AH Kardar, Javed Miandad and Sarfraz Nawaz (first-class enclosures) – PKR750 Hanif Mohammad, Imtiaz Ahmed, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Majid Khan, Nazars, Quaid, Saeed Ahmad, Zaheer Abbas (general enclosures) – PKR250

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-Mujeeb Ur Rahman (3/16) and Rashid Khan (3/22) shared 6 wickets before the Zadran duo of Najibullah 43 not out (17 balls, 5 sixes) and Ibrahim 42* (41 balls, 4 fours) shared 69 runs off 33 balls between them to hand Afghanistan an emphatic 7-wicket win over Bangladesh to advance to the Super Fours stage of the ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2022. Earlier in the evening, Bangladesh opted to bat first but were soon put in trouble as Mujeeb Ur Rahman (3/16) did the early damage by picking up three wickets in his first spell to put Bangladesh under pressure at 24/3 in the 5th over. Rashid Khan was introduced to bowl the 7th over and struck in his very 2nd delivery as he trapped Mushfiqur Rahim for 1 to leave Bangladesh at 28/4. Afif Hussain (12), Mohammadullah (25) and Mossadek Hussain (48*) batted well but Rashid Khan (3/22) kept taking wickets as he removed Afif Hussain (LBW) and Mohammadullah (caught in the deep by Ibrahim Zadran) one after the other to help Afghanistan reduce Bangladesh to 127 in their 20 overs. Afghanistan lost Rahmanullah Gurbaz (11) earlier in the chase at 15/1, and then after a 30-run partnership with Ibrahim Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai (23) was trapped in front at 45/2 in the 10th over to leave Afghanistan in trouble. The skipper Mohammad Nabi (8 off 9b) promoted himself up the order but lost his wicket only adding 8 runs to the total. Najibullah Zadran came in at 5 and started to rebuild the Afghanistan inning as he struck a big six over the deep mid-wicket off Mahedi Hassan in 16th over before clobbering Mustafizur Rahman for two more sixes in the 17th over to bring the equation down to 26 off the last three overs. Ibrahim Zadran clipped the first ball of the 18th over off his legs for four, which was followed by another pull shot and a couple of more sixes by Najibullah to take 22 runs off the 18th over to make Afghanistan needing only 4 runs off the last two overs. Najibullah finished the game with another big six for Afghanistan as he smashed one over the bowler’s head to help Afghanistan to an emphatic win by 7 wickets. Ibrahim Zadran won the best catch of the match award whereas Mujeeb Ur Rahman was adjudged as the player of the match for his impressive figures of 3/16 in his 4 overs. With this emphatic victory, Afghanistan advanced to the top four of ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2022.