AFG v BAN, 3rd T20I Review: Rashid Khan and Afghanistan complete 3-0 whitewash over Bangladesh

At the beginning of the three-match T20I series, not many would have given Afghanistan a chance against a rather seasoned Bangladesh side. However, on the day, and as they have been all through the series, the Afghans went ahead and secured a thumping 3-0 triumph, somthing they did on the back of some impressive displays from the likes of Rashid Khan and Mohamamd Nabi, two of perhaps their biggest stars.

Having won the toss, the Afghans decided to bat first, something they would be doing for the first time this series. The wicket in Dehradun, as it had done offered little for the fast bowlers although Mohammad Shahzad’s opening partner-in-crime Usman Ghani played with an air of caution about himself.

However, this did not stop the Afghan batsmen as they slammed the ball to different parts of the ground. Shahzad, the explosive wicketkeeper-batsman was in full flow as he whacked the likes of Mehedi Hasan and Abu Jayed to different parts. Samiullah Shenwari was also in his element as he weighed anchor towards the end of the innings as well. Nazmul Islam proved to be one of the few impressive bowlers on the day as he picked up a couple of wickets whilst being economical.

Chasing the Afghanistan target of 146 initially seemed to be child’s play for the Bangladesh batsmen. However, the first over from Mujeeb proved that the wicket was indeed a lot harder to bat on than initially thought. Wickets began to tumble soon after when the openers Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, and SoumyaSarkar fell in quick succession. However, the visitors had little to panic.

Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah began to stitch a crucial partnership, something that saw them lift the score from a lowly 4/53 all the way upwards to 137/4 with just eight runs to win from the final over. Rashid Khan was entrusted with bowling the final over and did not disappoint after he snapped up the important wicket of Mushfiqur from the very first delivery.

Ariful Haque was unable to strike a boundary of the final delivery before he too lost his wicket and Afghanistan were handed a one-run victory.

Brief Scores:

Afghanistan: 145/6 in 20 overs (Samiullah Shenwari 33*; Nazmul Islam 2/18)

Bangladesh: 144/6 in 20 overs (Mushfiqur Rahim 46; Mujeeb Ur Rahman 1/25)

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