We finished the game really well: Afghanistan captain

Following his side’s seven-wicket win over Bangladesh at the ongoing Asia Cup 2022, Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi said that his side finished the game well.

A late blitz from left-hander Najibullah Zadran helped Afghanistan secure direct qualification to the Super Four phase of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 as he hit a flurry of sixes to help his team defeat Bangladesh by seven wickets in a Group B tie on Tuesday.

“Everyone knows both Mujeeb and Rashid are world-class bowlers. They again showed their talent and ability. We plan to take early wickets to be ahead in the game. Everyone knows that we have power hitters in our team. We finished the game really well. Gurbaz tried a lot but couldn’t hit them well. Shakib bowled brilliantly,” said Nabi in a post-match presentation.

Coming to the match, Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat first.

Top-class bowling spells by pacer Mujeeb ur Rahman and spinner Rashid Khan helped Afghanistan restrict Bangladesh to a sub-par 127/7 despite a fighting knock by Mosaddek Hossain (48*).

At one stage Afghan bowlers reduced Bangladesh to 53/5 with some superb bowling. Fighting knocks from Mosaddek Hossain (48*) Mahmudullah (25) helped Bangladesh attain a respectable score. Rashid Khan (3/22) and Mujeeb Ur Rahman (3/16) proved difficult for Bangladesh.

Chasing 128, Afghanistan did not have a good start and were struggling at 65/3 with the final six overs to go. Then, the duo of Ibrahim Zadran (42*) and Najibullah Zadran (43*) let loose their arms and chased the target with nine balls to go.

Mosaddek Hossain (1/12) was the leading bowler for Bangladesh. Shakib and Saifuddin took one wicket each.

Mujeeb ur Rahman received the ‘Man of the Match’ award for his match-winning spell.

Mohammad Nabi said that Najibullah Zadran’s hitting in death overs changed the game in their favour.

He further said that bowling first turned out to be better for their side, as it helped them get an idea about the pitch.

“The pitch was new and nobody had played on it. Bowling first was better, we got an idea of what the pitch was. That is why we took early wickets and put our opponents under pressure,” said Nabi in a post-match press conference.

He said that for the last 15 years, the side has played in Sharjah, Abu Dhabi.

“We do not trust Sharjah to help us hit 200 runs all the time. Sometimes, lower totals are tough to chase. Batters did not throw early wickets and we targetted bowlers later,” he added.

The skipper said that team wants to play good cricket in the Super Four phase and wants to show that it has quality batters, bowlers and fielders.