India cruise to seven-wicket win, take 1-0 lead against Afghanistan

India began their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan with a commanding seven-wicket victory, chasing down 157 for the loss of just three wickets in a mere 13.4 overs.
Despite the early loss of the returning Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan immediately shifted the momentum.
The duo added 121 runs for the second wicket, with Abhishek bringing up his half-century in just 22 balls. Their 100-run partnership came off only 43 deliveries as India raced to 130/1 after 10 overs.
Abhishek eventually departed after a sensational 82 off 32 balls, caught by Rashid Khan off Mohammed Nabi’s bowling. Ishan Kishan followed for 42 off 33, falling just short of his half-century. Those wickets merely delayed the inevitable as India romped home with 38 balls to spare.
On a cloudy day, Pitch No. 6 was used for the opening T20I. Before the toss, India captain Shreyas Iyer presented Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran with a jersey carrying the signatures of the Indian players as a gesture of friendship.
India won the toss and opted to bowl first, with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Washington Sundar missing out, while Samson was back in the playing XI and took over the wicketkeeping duties.
Afghanistan’s innings got off to a poor start as Rahmanullah Gurbaz was dismissed for a duck with just the second delivery of the match. Jasprit Bumrah found the edge, with Abhishek completing the catch. Ibrahim Zadran was then run out for 11 off 10 balls, leaving Afghanistan at 38/2 after four overs.
Sediqullah Atal departed for 13 off 13, caught by Bumrah off Arshdeep Singh, before Gulbadin Naib fell to Axar Patel for 2. Afghanistan were reduced to 41/4 at the end of the powerplay.
The wickets continued to fall as Varun Chakravarthy dismissed Darwish Rasooli for 2, leaving Afghanistan at 43/5. They took nine overs to reach 50 and were 56/5 after 10 overs.
Nabi and Azmatullah Omarzai then provided Afghanistan with much-needed stability. The pair put together an 83-run partnership off 56 balls. Nabi scored 33 off 27 before Arshdeep dismissed him, ending the stand.
Omarzai was dropped by Kishan on 40 but made the most of the opportunity. He completed his half-century in 38 balls and remained unbeaten on 64 off 44 deliveries. Afghanistan finished on 156/8, with 21 runs coming from Shivam Dube’s final over.
Arshdeep was India’s standout bowler, finishing with 3/19, while Bumrah completed his four overs for 26 runs.
India’s chase suffered an early setback when Sanju Samson was dismissed for 10 off 8 balls, caught by Rasooli off the bowling of Omarzai.
Nabi took 2/28 for Afghanistan but the result was never in doubt once Abhishek started teeing off. 
Brief Scores: India 157/3 in 13.4 overs (Abhishek Sharma 82, Ishan Kishan 42) beat Afghanistan 156/8 (Azmatullah Omarzai 64*; Arshdeep 3/19) by seven wickets with 38 balls remaining.
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The post India cruise to seven-wicket win, take 1-0 lead against Afghanistan appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.



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