A century by Virat Kohli and a five-wicket haul by pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar helped Team India crush Afghanistan by 101 runs in their Super Four clash at Asia Cup 2022 and end their campaign on a winning note.
This match will be extremely memorable for Indian fans. With the bat, Indians got to see Virat hit his much-anticipated 71st ton while Men in Blue dominated the bowling too, thanks to a superb spell by Bhuveshwar Kumar in which he took five wickets for four runs.
Chasing 213, Afghanistan was off to a horrendous start as pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar sent back openers Hazratullah Zazai and Rahmanullah Gurbaz for ducks in the first over itself.
Ibrahim Zadran was next up on the crease and tried to hold one end steady. However, Karim Janat (2) and Najibullah Zadran (0) became Kumar’s next victims and captain Mohammad Nabi was trapped lbw by Arshdeep Singh.
Afghanistan was left reeling at 21/5 in six overs. Azmatullah Omarzai was the next to be dismissed by Kumar, who gained a five-wicket haul, finishing with the best bowling figures of his career with five wickets for four runs in four overs, which also included a maiden. Dinesh Karthik took a great catch at the covers.
At the end of 10 overs, Afghanistan was 34/6, with Ibrahim Zadran (20*) and Rashid Khan (4*).
The duo of Ibrahim and Rashid Khan joined hands and helped their team cross the 50-run mark. Rashid was dismissed by Deepak Hooda’s spin for just 15 after being caught by Axar Patel at deep midwicket.
Afghanistan was at 54/7 after this 33-run stand broke. At the end of 15 overs, Afghanistan was at 63/7, with Mujeeb (3*) and Ibrahim (35*).
Mujeeb ur Rahman was up next and he started building a stand with Ibrahim. Though it was not enough as the run rate kept climbing to an unachievable level.
Spinner Ravichandran Ashwin struck for Team India and gave them their eight-wicket by dislodging Mujeeb’s stumps when he was at 18. Afghanistan had not even crossed the 100-run mark and was at 87/8. The 33-run stand between Mujeeb and Zadran was over.
Fareed Malik was the next one on the crease. He along with Zadran helped Afghanistan finish their innings at 111/8 without any further damage.
Zadran also brought his half-century and scored an unbeaten 64* off 59 balls.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the leading bowler for India with 5/4. Aswhin, Arshdeep and Hooda got one each and India finished their campaign on a winning note by 101 runs.
Star Indian batter Virat Kohli completed his much-anticipated 71st international century and powered India to a massive 212/2 in their 20 overs during their last Super Four clash against Afghanistan at the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 on Thursday.
Put to bat first by Afghanistan, openers KL Rahul and Virat Kohli got Team India off to a great start. The running between the wickets by the duo was good as usual. Openers really started to open their arms in the third over, with Virat smashing pacers Fazalhaq Farooqi for two fours.
From that point on, KL and Virat feasted on Afghan bowlers. Virat Kohli looked in really good touch and hit spinner Mujeeb ur Rahman for two fours and a six in the sixth over. At the end of six overs and the powerplay, India stood at 52/0, with Virat (25*) and Rahul (26*) unbeaten.
Virat and KL continued their domination over Afghanistan, even after the powerplay. The duo kept the scoreboard running at a good speed. At the end of 10 overs, India stood at 87/0, with Rahul (42*) and Virat (44*).
Virat brought up his 33rd half-century in the format with a single. KL Rahul helped the team cross 100-run mark with a four in 11.2 overs and scored another four on the next ball to bring up his fifty.
Medium-pacer Fareed Malik ended the 119-run stand between the duo in the 13th over, dismissing Rahul for 62 off 41 balls after the batter was caught by Najibullah Zadran at long-on.
Suryakumar Yadav was next and he started his innings with a six on the very first ball, but Fareed got his wicket on the very next ball.
Rishabh Pant was up on the crease. He continued to tick the scoreboard with Virat and took India into the final five without further damage. At the end of 15 overs, India was at 134/2, with Pant (6*) and Virat (59*).
Pant and Virat continued their assault on Afghanistan bowlers. Virat was the aggressor and mercilessly hit boundaries.
With two overs to go, Pant-Virat brought up their 50-run stand. Virat also entered into the 90s. Finally, he completed his much-anticipated 71st international century and his first in T20Is.
India finished its innings at 212/2, with Virat Kohli (122*) and Rishabh Pant (20*). Fareed Malik took 2/57 for Afghanistan.