In match three of the Asia Cup 2022, Bangladesh locked horns with Afghanistan at Sharjah International Stadium and it was the Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan who called it right at the toss. After putting his team to bat first, the openers struggled to get off to a decent start.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman played around with the Bangla tigers’ openers as he deceived both of them. The spinner bagged a three-for in no time and Rashid Khan backed him up with a wicket to reduce Bangladesh to 31/4 in seven overs. Things got ugly for the Bangla tigers when Rashid Khan picked up another scalp and restricted the flow of runs.
Mahmudullah and Mosaddek Hossain tried to steady the team but they were taking it too slow which affected the run rate heavily. Mujeeb Ur Rahman was the star with the ball for Afghanistan as he ended up with a stellar spell, conceding only 16 runs after bagging a three-for. The spinners used the grip on the pitch and spun the match in favour of Afghanistan as they restricted the Bangladesh batters to 127 for the loss of seven wickets at the end of the first innings.
Shakib Al Hasan managed to provide the initial breakthrough for the Bangla tigers as he removed Rahmanullah Gurbaz cheaply. Hazratullah Zazai pulled his team out of the trap as he played the anchor to get things going for the team until he perished in the 10th over for 23 off 26. Nabi too got out early which left Afghanistan in some trouble at 62 for 3.
Najibullah Zadran and Ibrahim Zadran then joined hands and made a stellar recovery. An expensive seventeenth over from Mustafizur Rahman eased the pressure off the batters and things looked bright for Afghanistan to clinch the win. Najibullah Zadran, the star of the night, who delivered the killer punches, kept finding gaps and pushed his team closer to the target and eventually won the match for Afghanistan as they thumped Bangladesh by seven wickets.
Let’s take some of the interesting and enthusiastic tweets that users came up with after the match:
Outstanding victory ✌️
Congratulations to team @ACBofficials and the whole Afghan nation #AFGvsBAN #AsiaCup2022
Just wow team blue tigers— Obaid Yousafzai (@obaidofficial88) August 30, 2022
#AsiaCup2022 BOW to #AFGvsBAN What a batting show man @iamnajibzadran @Ibrahimzadran
— Jerry Louis (@Visionahead) August 30, 2022
I want india vs afghan in finale . Two most deserving teams #AFGvsBAN
— CASPIAN (@thecaspiansk) August 30, 2022
Well-done @ACBofficials 🎉🥳🎊#AFGvsBAN
— Jodhpuri JOY (@manit_choudhary) August 30, 2022
Bangladesh and their obsession with celebration 😂😂#AFGvsBAN
— Schrödinger (@jaip_gymaholic) August 30, 2022
Afghanistan ❤️
We love you💞#AsiaCup2022 #AFGvsBAN #Afganistan— Mukund Sharma 🇮🇳 (@Mukund_14feb) August 30, 2022
Evolution of Afghanistan’s cricket is inspirational. 🏏. Wish they could lift this cup, it would definitely give them a mega boost. #AFGvsBAN
— Fayaaz Naseem Takkar (@fayaaz_takkar_) August 30, 2022
Thumping of @iamnajibzadran 🔥🔥#AFGvsBAN
— Shahir (@esafzy) August 30, 2022
#AFGvsBAN cmon Najib 🔥🇦🇫
— Nazir Adil (@NazirAdil0) August 30, 2022
Najibullah , you beauty, That's the way to hit🔥🔥, real pocket dynamo.#AFGvsBAN #AFGvBAN
— Dwight K Schrute (@unlucky_bt_not) August 30, 2022
