Afghanistan Beat Zimbabwe by 37 Runs — Ahmadzai's 22-Ball 52 and Rashid's Double Act Turn 66 for 5 Into a Win

There is an old line about a batter playing on a different pitch from everyone else. In Sharjah on Tuesday, Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai made it literal. He walked in at 66 for 5 in the 12th over, on a surface so slow that the ball seemed to stop and think before reaching the bat, and simply refused to accept the conditions. He reached fifty off 20 balls, stepping down the track and hitting straight and sweeping square, and by the time he was out Afghanistan had a total.

That total was 177, with Rashid Khan adding 30 off 10 balls at the death, and on this pitch it was well above par. Zimbabwe were bowled out for 140 in 19.1 overs. Afghanistan won by 37 runs and lead the three-match series 1-0, taking their T20I record against Zimbabwe to 20 wins and 2 defeats.

The first half of the innings belonged to Zimbabwe. Captain Ibrahim Zadran hit a full ball from Brad Evans to cover in the second over, and Afghanistan were 18 for 3 at the end of the third. Rahmanullah Gurbaz fell to a fine catch by Sikandar Raza off Wellington Masakadza, Azmatullah Omarzai chipped a googly back to Raza, and Afghanistan had 31 for 3 in the powerplay and 53 for 4 at the halfway mark.

Shahidullah had been building quietly, and his 46 off 42 gave Ahmadzai the support he needed. The pair added 57 off 29 balls for the sixth wicket. When Shahidullah went at 123, Rashid came in at No. 8 and hit one four and four sixes in a 10-ball stay, including a wristy slice off Evans in the 19th over that drew a thumbs-up from the bowler. Rashid and Ahmadzai added 33 off 12 balls. Nyamhuri took three wickets in the final over and Afghanistan were bowled out with a ball to spare, but the 111 runs after 66 for 5 had changed the match.

Zimbabwe can take positives from the start of the match. Ernest Masuku, 33 years old and on T20I debut in place of the injured Blessing Muzarabani, bowled back of a length from an awkward angle and removed Sediqullah Atal and Mohammad Akram in the same over. The lbw against Akram looked high on replays, but there was no DRS in this match. Newman Nyamhuri took three wickets in the final over to finish with 4 for 31. But Zimbabwe's lines slipped in the middle overs, and that let Afghanistan back in.

The chase never got going. Ben Curran fell to Farooqi in the third over and Zimbabwe were only 38 for 1 after the powerplay. Rashid bowled the sixth over, earlier than usual, and conceded three. In the eighth he bowled Innocent Kaia, who had looked the most comfortable of their batters, with a googly after a series of them. Brian Bennett (13 off 18) holed out to cow corner off Mujeeb, and Zimbabwe were 56 for 3 at the same stage where Afghanistan had been struggling. Ryan Burl's 32 and a 38-run stand with Raza kept them close for a while, but from 94 for 3 they lost seven wickets for 46. Farooqi came back to finish with 3 for 13 from 3.1 overs.

The pitch was slow and grippy from the start and stayed that way, which is why 177 was well above par. Back-of-a-length bowling worked early on, as Masuku showed, and Rashid in particular was very hard to score off: his four overs went for 20. The batters who succeeded, Ahmadzai and Rashid, were the ones who used their feet and hit hard rather than relying on timing.

Ahmadzai played the innings of the match, but Rashid influenced both halves of it. With the bat he turned a good total into one Zimbabwe couldn't reach: 30 off 10, with four sixes, hitting slower balls hard and punishing anything full until Madhevere took a diving catch at midwicket with four balls left. With the ball he bowled the last over of the powerplay for three runs, then set Kaia up with googlies before bowling him, and finished with 2 for 20 from four overs. Afghanistan don't often need Rashid's batting, but here it made the difference between a competitive total and a winning one.

This match didn't have a CricIntel preview — we'll have full analysis for the next encounter.

The second T20I is at the same ground on Thursday. Zimbabwe's bowlers did well at the start of both innings, and Masuku looked like a genuine find. What they need is a plan for the middle and death overs, when Afghanistan scored 111 off 51 balls. They also need someone to bat through the chase alongside Burl and Raza. For Afghanistan, Ibrahim Zadran's lean start as T20I captain continues, and the top order (18 for 3) needs to be better on a pitch like this. But with Rashid, Farooqi and Mujeeb all taking two wickets or more, they have plenty of bowling.