Afghanistan loses to Bangladesh in first match of bilateral series

After Asia Cup, Afghanistan lost to Bangladesh in first match of bilateral series Afghanistan lost to Bangladesh in the first match of bilateral series that started after Asia Cup. Rashid Khan's team lost by 4 wickets in the match held in Sharjah on Thursday (October 2). The Afghan captain admitted that both the team's batting and bowling were the main reasons for the defeat.

Chasing a target of 151 runs, Bangladesh showed progress from the beginning. The opening pair of Liton Das and Towhid Hridoy scored 109 runs. At that time, it seemed that the victory was almost certain. But suddenly, the Tigers' batting collapsed. Bangladesh lost 6 wickets for 9 runs in just 24 balls. At that moment, Afghanistan came back into the match.

Captain Rashid Khan was the hero of the turnaround. He took 4 wickets for just 18 runs and created an extraordinary record. This is the fifth time that he has taken at least 4 wickets in an innings as a captain in international T20s. No other Test-playing nation has achieved this feat more times. Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan and Sri Lanka's Lasith Malinga have both taken four wickets in an innings as captains twice. Rashid has also surpassed Canada's Charles Perchard's record.

However, despite his personal achievements, Rashid was disappointed with the team's defeat. After the match, he said—
"I still feel like we could have finished better. There is no room for losing rhythm in T20s. Once you lose rhythm, it is difficult to get it back. We could not bowl in the right places in the first 10 overs. When we bowled to the stumps regularly, we were able to get back into the match."

The Afghan captain also expressed his anger about the batting. He said—
"We gave away wickets very easily. Hopefully, we will continue to learn and improve. The main goal is to prepare for the World Cup. Batsmen should focus on their normal game. Time can be taken, but wrong shots cannot be taken under pressure."

Afghanistan's innings did not produce any big partnership. After breaking the opening partnership of 25 runs, they lost 4 wickets for 40 runs. Azmatullah Omarzai and Rahmanullah Gurbaz put on the highest partnership of 33 runs.

Finally, for the seventh wicket, Nurul Hasan Sohan and Rishad Hossain's 35-run partnership from 18 balls gave Bangladesh the relief of victory with 8 balls in hand.

The second T20 of the series will be held in Sharjah today.