Afghanistan Beat Bangladesh by 7 Wickets — Rashid Khan's 4 for 31 and Rahmat Shah's 67 Not Out Seal a Place in the Final

Bangladesh came to Sharjah needing a win, without their injured captain Litton Das, and chose to bat. Within seven overs they were 28 for 4. They spent the next 25 overs recovering, and then Rashid Khan finished off the innings in the time it takes to bowl a few overs. Afghanistan chased 161 for the loss of three wickets with 87 balls to spare. It was their fifth consecutive ODI win over Bangladesh, and it put them in Friday's final against Zimbabwe.

The match was effectively decided in the first seven overs. Bangladesh did well to reach 160 from 28 for 4, but they never had a total that could challenge Afghanistan.

Rashid will get the headlines, but the seamers did the early damage. In the second over Yamin Ahmadzai found seam movement away from Tanzid Hasan, who followed it and edged behind for 1. Soumya Sarkar went next ball, chopping an ambitious drive onto his stumps for a golden duck. Azmatullah Omarzai beat Najmul Hossain Shanto's outside edge several times before finally finding it in the seventh over, and later in that over took a sharp one-handed return catch to remove Towhid Hridoy for 0. Bangladesh were 38 for 4 at the end of the powerplay.

Rashid came back when Bangladesh had recovered to 121 for 4. He bowled Shoriful Islam, trapped Emon lbw with a slider, and had debutant Al Islam caught by Mohammad Nabi, who took a superb diving catch at the second attempt. Next ball he bowled Mustafizur Rahman to end the innings. Bangladesh lost their last six wickets for 39, and scored only two runs in the final powerplay.

The chase was not entirely smooth. Taskin Ahmed bowled Rahmanullah Gurbaz with an inswinger in the third over, and then, after head coach Phil Simmons signalled for him to go round the wicket, bowled Sediqullah Atal as well. At 39 for 2, Rahmat Shah and Ibrahim Zadran played carefully for more than five overs before starting to score. Zadran top-edged a Mustafizur slower ball for 34. Rahmat and Hashmatullah Shahidi then added an unbroken 66 without taking any risks. Rahmat reached his 34th ODI fifty and finished unbeaten on 67 from 90 balls. A single at the start of the 28th over took Afghanistan to 121 for 3, which ensured the final line-up and knocked Bangladesh out.

Parvez Hossain Emon only played because Litton Das was injured, and he was Bangladesh's best batter. He swept Nabi and Rashid well, pulled Bilal Sami for six, and reached his second ODI fifty from 75 balls. Saif Hassan survived the early collapse, played a couple of good cover drives, and survived an Afghanistan review in the 17th over. The pair added 93 from 147 balls, and at drinks Bangladesh were 111 for 4 and well placed for a recovery.

Then Saif, on 41, charged Nabi and top-edged a slower arm ball to cover. It was an unnecessary shot with plenty of overs still left. Mehidy Hasan Miraz went for 2 in the next over, and Emon was left to bat with the tail. He was lbw to Rashid for 70, and a Bangladesh review didn't save him. When Emon went, so did any chance of a competitive total.

The bowlers deserve some credit. Taskin was lively, and Mehidy's eight overs went for only 25. But with 160 on the board they needed wickets, and after the third wicket fell in the 20th over, they didn't take another.

Sharjah gave the seamers something early. Ahmadzai and Omarzai both found movement off the pitch, and Taskin found swing during the chase. As the ball got older it became easier to bat, and the Saif–Emon and Rahmat–Shahidi partnerships both showed that patience was rewarded. Rashid was the exception. He got the ball to skid on and turn enough to beat good batters. The match was decided by the opening overs of each innings, not by the pitch.

This was Rashid's second four-wicket haul in two matches, after his 4 for 17 against Zimbabwe on Monday. He has now taken eight wickets in 16.2 overs in this tournament. His figures here were 8.2-0-31-4. The commentary called him the "smiling assassin", which fits. Rashid doesn't need a turning pitch. He varies his pace, skids the ball on, and gets batters to commit to shots they shouldn't. Bangladesh knew he would come on at some point, and when he did, they had no answer.

We said Afghanistan were "slight favourites", and they won comfortably, so we got the winner right. We named Rashid as the bowler who would decide it, and he took 4 for 31 and Player of the Match. We also wrote that Bangladesh couldn't afford another middle-order collapse, especially against Rashid. They collapsed at the top this time, and then again against Rashid. We said a total below 240 would put Bangladesh under pressure, and 160 was never going to be enough.

Several things we got wrong. Our preview placed the match at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi, but it was played in Sharjah. We named Fazalhaq Farooqi as a new-ball threat, and he didn't play; Ahmadzai and Omarzai did that job instead. We hoped Litton Das and Tanzid Hasan would give Bangladesh a platform, but Litton was injured and Tanzid made 1. We expected Gurbaz to be explosive, and he made 6 before Taskin bowled him. We did correctly say that Taskin needed early wickets. He took two, but Bangladesh needed more.

The league stage is over. Afghanistan finished top with four points from two wins, Zimbabwe second with two, and Bangladesh lost both games and are out. Afghanistan and Zimbabwe play the final on Friday, October 23. Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by 158 runs on Monday, but Zimbabwe will take some encouragement from how Bangladesh's seamers troubled Afghanistan's top order here. Taskin had Afghanistan 39 for 2. If Zimbabwe can make early breakthroughs like that, they have a chance.