A rapid powerplay meant Afghanistan’s batters were never troubled during their chase of 126.
Harare | By Niaz Shinwari
Afghanistan 129 for 3 (Ibrahim 57, Evans 2–21) beat Zimbabwe 125 (Raza 37, Rashid 3–9, Mujeeb 2–26, Abdollah 2–28) by seven wickets*
Afghanistan clinched the T20I series against Zimbabwe with a dominant all-round performance in Harare, led by Rashid Khan’s devastating spell and a composed half-century from opener Ibrahim Zadran. The visitors restricted Zimbabwe to 125 before cruising to a seven-wicket win.
Zimbabwe’s top order tried to rebuild cautiously after early setbacks, but Mujeeb-ur-Rahman’s control through the powerplay left them tied down. He dismissed opener Dion Myers, who miscued a sweep to short fine, and kept pressure on with sharp variations. Brendan Taylor, looking to accelerate before the field spread, mistimed a lofted drive and was caught at mid-off, leaving Zimbabwe 34 for 2 after six overs.
The surface in Harare offered little pace, but Abdollah Ahmadzai’s lively spell injected intensity. His short, skidding deliveries troubled the middle order, with Ryan Burl falling to a sharp bouncer while attempting a pull. Zimbabwe slipped to 57 for 4, scoring barely a run a ball through the first ten overs.
Captain Sikandar Raza provided resistance, striking a few clean boundaries, including a lofted extra cover drive off Abdollah. But his innings ended when Rashid Khan returned to bowl the 17th over. The leg-spinner, nursing a hand injury, ripped through Zimbabwe’s lower order, finishing with 3 for 9 as the hosts collapsed to 125 all out.
Afghanistan’s reply was brisk and confident. Ibrahim Zadran struck back to back fifties, timing the ball fluently through the offside as the visitors racked up nine boundaries inside the powerplay. With 54 runs already on the board from the first six overs, the chase was all but over.
Though the middle order again looked uncertain, Sediqullah Atal and Darwish Rasooli managed 25 off 32 between them, Ibrahim’s unbeaten 57 ensured Afghanistan crossed the line in 16.2 overs to seal the series.
The victory continued Afghanistan’s strong form in limited-overs cricket, with Rashid Khan’s leadership and depth in bowling proving decisive. The teams will meet again for the final T20I in Harare before shifting focus to the ODI leg of the tour.