Afghanistan A shocked India A on Friday, October 25, at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground (Ministry Turf 1) in the semi-finals of the Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2024. The team captained by Darwish Rasooli advanced to the finals for the first time in the tournament’s history after winning by 20 runs. Afghanistan A secured their tickets for the summit match against Sri Lanka on Sunday, October 27, at the same location, after taking 206/4 in their 20 overs and limiting India A to 186/7.
Mohammad Nabi, the legendary Afghan player, was watching every moment of the exciting match between two incredibly skilled teams.
He uploaded a video of himself in a car watching the last moments of the game. Claps and fist pumps were used by the star all-rounder to celebrate the victory. The 39-year-old wrote in the caption that he wished the squad well in the crucial final and congratulated them on the historic victory.
“Happy Afghani New Year 🌦🌫. An incredible evening as our Afghan Atalans defeated India A in the ACC T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup’s second semifinal! An outstanding performance by our heroes. I’m wishing you luck in the Grand Final; may Allah provide you the victory! I’m very excited to celebrate your win!” According to Nabi’s most recent Instagram post.
Watch Nabi’s Instagram post here:
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Ramandeep Singh’s hard-fought half-century is in vain as Afghanistan A maintains composure to win.
After winning the toss, Rasooli decided to bat first in order to use his potent bowling unit to put pressure on the Indian squad and score runs on the board. With 137 runs in 14 overs, Zubaid Akbari and Sediqullah Atal gave his team a thrilling start. After a solid 64 from 41 balls, Aaqib Khan removed the former. Karim Janat, a powerful all-rounder, was elevated to No. 3 by Afghanistan A, and he didn’t let the momentum slip. Atal struck five sixes and seven fours before falling for an 83 off 52 balls. To reach a 20-ball 41, Janat, however, kept crushing the Indian bowling order. The final score for the batting side was 206/4.
India’s response Allah Ghazanfar, the mysterious spinner, sent both of the openers packing after they attempted to attack the Afghans. In six overs, India fell to 49/3, and captain Tilak Varma also left in the final over of the powerplay. In an attempt to save the innings, Nehal Wadhera and Ayush Badoni were run out just as the former was starting to appear dangerous. As last year’s runners-up lost half their team for 100 runs in the 13th over, Badoni left shortly after.
Ramandeep Singh put together a 68-run partnership with Nishant Sindhu off 31 balls in a brilliant effort that kept India in the hunt. However, following a misunderstanding with Ramandeep, the latter was run out, becoming the second Indian hitter to be out. Despite playing some thrilling strokes, the all-rounder for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) was ultimately left to do too much.
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He scored an impressive 64 off 34 balls before being removed off the final delivery of the innings, causing India A to lose by 20 runs.