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Chasing 145, Zimbabwe clinched a thrilling last-ball victory in the opening T20I against Afghanistan, with Tashinga Musekiwa keeping his composure under pressure. The match saw a dramatic final over. Musekiwa found the boundary and sprinted between the wickets, guiding his team over the line off the last ball. Earlier, tight spells from Mohammad Nabi and […]
Chasing 145, Zimbabwe clinched a thrilling last-ball victory in the opening T20I against Afghanistan, with Tashinga Musekiwa keeping his composure under pressure. The match saw a dramatic final over. Musekiwa found the boundary and sprinted between the wickets, guiding his team over the line off the last ball.
Earlier, tight spells from Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan, along with a miserly four-run 18th over from Mujeeb Ur Rahman, had reduced the equation from 60 off 42 balls to 21 off 12. However, a 13-ball over from Naveen-ul-Haq, which went for 10 runs, set the stage for the finale. Despite Azmatullah Omarzai’s variations in pace and length, Afghanistan could not defend the 10 runs needed in the last over, handing Zimbabwe the win.
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Musekiwa blasted a slower delivery over Cow Corner, nearly clearing the fence with the first ball of the 20th. He then quickly turned for three twos, and with the scores tied and the field up for the final ball, he drove straight past mid-off, triggering wild celebrations with his partner in front of a jubilant Harare crowd.
The final seven overs were filled with fluctuating tension, starting with a quicker ball from Mohammad Nabi that caused a miscued slog from the well-set Dion Myers. The wicket broke a 75-run partnership between Myers and Brian Bennett, and the asking rate climbed above nine runs per over.
Naveen returned for an over that didn’t go as planned. His default strategy was the wide yorker, but five of the first eight balls were wides, along with a high full toss that Sikandar Raza smashed over short third for four. When Naveen went full and wide again, Raza responded by cutting the ball down the ground. A slower ball eventually dismissed the Zimbabwe captain, whose innings lasted only five legal deliveries.
Rashid struggled in his first three overs and got rid of the well-set Bennett for 49 with a slider. He then had Ryan Burl miscue a pull shot to deep backward square leg. However, neither Rashid nor Mujeeb’s stump-to-stump bowling was enough to stop Zimbabwe from crossing the line.
The chase began with Zimbabwe under pressure from Naveen, who started with a maiden and then cramped Tadiwanashe Marumani on the pull. However, Naveen dropped Bennett on 8 off Azmatullah Omarzai in the fifth over. Rashid came on in the final over of the powerplay but couldn’t contain the scoring. He bowled short and wide—both off and leg side—allowing Myers to pick up two boundaries.
The pair consolidated, but a few quiet overs saw the asking rate climb to nine. They responded by hitting a boundary in each of Fareed Ahmad’s first two overs, and Myers launched another long-hop from Rashid over long-on in the 12th. Bennett continued accelerating, smashing Omarzai for two fours, but Nabi’s intervention set up a thrilling finish.
Earlier, Rashid had no hesitation in opting to bat first. Rahmanullah Gurbaz sought to take the early initiative but was undone by Richard Ngarava’s extra bounce on the third ball of the match. In the third over, Sediqullah Atal was given a lifeline by Wessly Madhevere but fell soon after, trying to heave Trevor Gwandu over mid-on. Meanwhile, Hazratullah Zazai made a promising start, driving Ngarava through point in the first over and launching Bennett down the ground in the third before holing out off Blessing Muzarabani.
Omarzai and Karim Janat lowered the risk post-powerplay, each hitting a boundary off Raza to bring the run rate back to a manageable level. However, an attempt to launch Wellington Masakadza over the top resulted in Omarzai being caught at long-on.
Nabi joined Janat with Afghanistan in a precarious position at 58 for 5 in the 11th over. Their partnership started slowly but was helped by some sloppy fielding from Zimbabwe. Burl’s misfield at long-off turned two runs into three in the 12th over. Muzarabani lost sight of the ball, gifting Janat his first boundary. Nabi found the gaps to take some easy twos before targeting the returning Ngarava in the 16th over. Two boundaries in that over brought Afghanistan past 100 with four overs to go. Nabi then began the death overs with six and three fours off Gwandu, the last of which came after another fielding mistake.
Janat and Nabi added 79 off 49 balls before Nabi was dismissed by Ngarava in a seven-run 19th over. Janat, who anchored the innings, remained unbeaten on 54 off 49 balls. Despite his efforts, neither he nor Rashid could find a boundary off Gwandu in the final over.
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