SHARJAH: Afghanistan put on a tight bowling display against the young Pakistan side to restrict them to a meagre 92/9 in the first T20I of the three-match series here at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Opting to bat first, the young Pakistan side could accumulate 92/9 in their allotted 20 overs as they seemed clueless against a disciplined bowling attack put on by spirited Afghanistan.
The green shirts were off to a dismal start to their innings as their young opening pair of Mohammad Haris, and Saim Ayub could only add 17 runs to the total before Fazalhaq Farooqi dismissed the former on six.
Abdullah then joined Saim with their side in heaps of trouble, and he, too, could not get going as the right-handed batter fell victim to Azmatullah Omarzai for a two-ball duck.
Saim continued his brief resistance with a cautious 15-ball 17 before Naveen-ul-Haq castled him at the brink of the first powerplay. He smashed two boundaries and a six amid his fighting knock.
Pakistan then endured another setback on the first delivery of the seventh over as Tayyab Tahir, who looked to turn the tables with his aggressive knock, fell victim to Rashid Khan. Tayyab could score 16 off nine deliveries, hitting three boundaries.
Making his return to the national side after a gap of almost two years, Azam Khan had a comeback to forget as the wicketkeeper batter bagged a two-ball duck, resulting in Pakistan slipping to 41/5 in the eighth over.
Pakistan’s batting line collapse in first T20
Following the slump, skipper Shadab Khan and Imad Wasim looked to anchor the innings with a gritty partnership.
The pair looked determined to settle things down by bringing their experience into play, but Mujeeb Ur Rahman trumped Shadab to break the budding partnership. Shadab could score 12 off 18.
The green shirts then again began to lose wickets at regular intervals after Shadab’s dismissal, and Imad, who was hanging in there for his side, also fell in the 18th over after a fighting 32-ball 18.
Pakistan’s batting tail – Zaman Khan and Ihsanullah – added crucial runs in the death overs, but that was not enough, as the green shirts could finish at a paltry 92/9. Zaman and Ihsanullah remained unbeaten for eight runs each.
Farooqi, Mujeeb, and Mohammad Nabi led the bowling attack for Afghanistan with two wickets each, while Rashid Khan, Naveen, and Omarzai struck out a batter apiece.
