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- Published: September 21, 2024 17:50
New Delhi: Rashid ‘Karamati‘ Khan has grabbed headlines once again as he clinched a 5-wicket haul on his 26th birthday, to become the first player in 53 years to do so. Khan’s 5-wicket haul and Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s blistering century ensured that Afghanistan restricted South Africa to only 134.
The Proteas had a tough job on their hand as they looked to chase down a mammoth 311. This was the first series win of Afghanistan over South Africa. Afghanistan’s recent triumph over South Africa is a befitting reply to the latter’s decision to cease play with Afghanistan due to the government’s restriction on female cricket.
A T20 legend at 26 – Afghanistan’s first global superstar!
Happy birthday to the incredible Rashid Khan 👏 pic.twitter.com/uQYDri26w4
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) September 20, 2024
What happened in the match?
Talking about the game, the Afghans won the toss and opted to bat first on a pitch which was conducive to batting. Subsequently, openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Riaz Hassan stitched an 88-run opening partnership. Later on, the wicket-keeper batsman had a 101-run partnership with Rahmat Shah. Shah played the role of the anchor in the innings as he scored 50 off 66 balls.
However, it was the fireworks of all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai that set the tone for Afghanistan. Omarzai scored a blistering 86 runs off 50 balls to push the target beyond the 300-run mark.
South Africa looked patchy…
In return, the Proteas came out all guns and managed to get a good partnership of 73 runs. Skipper Temba Bavuma and Tony de Zorzi both looked in good touch. However, in the later half of the innings, the South African batsmen were blown away by the Afghanistani spinners.
Skipper Rashid Khan led the attack against the Proteas. However, it was Nangeyalia Kharote who was the champion of the night with figures of 4/26 with spin bowling. Afghanistan has an unassailable 2-0 lead in the 3-match series and thereby pocketed the series.