ICC Intercontinental Cup 2015-17: Afghanistan tops the table to bag the title

Afghanistan have added a new feather to their cap by clinching the Intercontinental Cup trophy on Saturday.  The Afghanistan boys beat UAE in the final match of the four-day tournament. They only had to chase 19 runs in their second innings, and they reached the target without losing any wickets, resulting in a 10-wicket win. The visitors piled up an impressive 510/9 in their first innings.

Ihsanullah scored the maiden hundred of his career- 124 off 242 balls, with 13 boundaries and a six. Rahmat Shah was impressive too, scoring a well made 103. Skipper Asghar Stanikzai wasn’t too far behind and came up with a solid 114, which included 12 boundaries and a  six.  Apart from the hundred-makers, Afsar Zazai remained unbeaten on 50*.

Spinner Rashid Khan fancied his chances and returned with a 42-ball 40. Ahmed Raza picked a five-for, his figures read 5/148. Mohammad Naveed picked three wickets. UAE in reply made 197, and apart from Shaiman Anwar, who scored an unbeaten 85, none of the batters were able to apply themselves.

UAE openers put on a strong stand before Rashid’s five-for

Rashid and Zahir scalped three wickets each while Dawlat Zadran picked two wickets for 29 runs. UAE were restricted to 85/4 at one stage and they could never recover from that stage. Following on, the openers displayed resistance and put up an opening stand of 146 runs. Skipper Rohan Mustafa scored 68 while his partner Chirag Suri made 81. It frustrated the bowlers, as they were unable to create a breakthrough, unlike the first innings.

But once the pair got out, the Afghan bowlers kept fetching wickets at regular intervals. Rameez Shahzad looked promising during his stay at the crease but he could not convert the good start and was sent back for 46 By Zahir. Rashid Khan did a better job in the second innings by picking five wickets and ending with 5/83. UAE were folded out for 331.

Here’s how Twitter reacted to Afghanistan’s win

A huge congrats to the Afghanistan boys @ACBofficials where they are about to win the @ICC #intercontinentalcup ????????????

— Dean Jones (@ProfDeano) December 2, 2017

2017 will be remembered for all good Cricketing reasons in Afghanistan . Congratulations to the entire nation for winning th ICC intercontinental Cup for the second time
Proud of you Blue tigers pic.twitter.com/EFwqb4WuL2

— Mohammad Nabi (@MohammadNabi007) December 2, 2017

Champions of I CUP. Congrats to all Afghan Nation @MohammadNabi007 @afghcricket pic.twitter.com/SFsvSNigYB

— Rashid Khan (@rashidkhan_19) December 2, 2017

CHAMPIONS! ? Afghanistan celebrate winning the Intercontinental Cup ? #ICup pic.twitter.com/eRLNtSIbGA

— ICC (@ICC) December 2, 2017

Very proud of the boys for the win against UAE and becoming the champions of the @ICC Intercontinental Cup. Another significant milestone achieved by @ACBofficials which also proves the Afghanistan is a strong team in all formats of the game. Congrats!@EklilHakimi @afghcricket

— Atif Mashal (@MashalAtif) December 2, 2017

2017 will be remembered for all good Cricketing reasons in Afghanistan for @ACBofficials.
Congrats to the entire nation for winning the #ICCICUP17 tournament. The blue tigers played in this tournament like a real Champions.@EklilHakimi @MashalAtif @WillGlenwright @SadatNaderi

— Shafiq Stanikzai (@ShafiqStanikzai) December 2, 2017

Congratulations to Afghanistan on winning the #ICup trophy! ?

They chase down their winning total of 19 to beat the UAE by ten wickets! pic.twitter.com/7fKHTdOgCh

— ICC (@ICC) December 2, 2017

Afghanistan beat @EmiratesCricket by 10 wickets to win the @ICC Intercontinental Cup 2015-2017 pic.twitter.com/hVaKxyTt8v

— Afghan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) December 2, 2017

So they leave the Associate field as chamipons of the #IntercontinentalCup – Now its time to play with the big boys! #Afghanistan https://t.co/27D1t9p00u

— Slipstream Cricket (@SlipstreamCrick) December 2, 2017

Congratulations Afghanistan cricket on winning #IntercontinentalCup , Time to move ahead. #AFGvUAE ? ??

— Obeid Rahemi مشواڼي (@engr_raheemi) December 2, 2017