New Delhi, September 17 (Daily Kiran) : India celebrated a remarkable achievement on Thursday, defeating Afghanistan by 127 runs in the third and final T20 match at Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. This victory not only marked India’s most significant win against Afghanistan in T20 history but also completed a clean sweep of the series, ending with a 3-0 record.
Previously, India had secured a 101-run victory over Afghanistan on September 8, 2022. The largest win in T20 format for India remains a 168-run triumph against New Zealand on February 1, 2023. Conversely, this match represented Afghanistan’s most substantial loss by runs in T20 history.
The series commenced with India winning the first match by seven wickets, followed by another victory by the same margin in the second match played on Tuesday.
Batting first after losing the toss, India set a formidable target of 221 runs, thanks to explosive performances from Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson. The duo forged a stunning partnership of 142 runs for the first wicket in just 9.5 overs. Abhishek scored a blistering 108 runs off 34 balls, hitting 11 sixes and 9 fours. He reached his century in just 30 balls, marking the fastest T20 century by any Indian player against a full-member nation.
Samson contributed with a solid 50 runs off 35 balls, while Tilak Varma managed only 10 runs for the second wicket. Captain Shreyas Iyer added 29 runs, helping push the total beyond 200. For Afghanistan, Azmatullah Omarzai took two wickets, while Rashid Khan and Abdullah Ahmadzai claimed one each.
In response, Afghanistan crumbled to just 94 runs in 14.1 overs. Captain Ibrahim Zadran (25) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (15) provided a brief partnership of 31 runs for the first wicket, but once that partnership broke, wickets fell rapidly.
Afghanistan lost four wickets for just 47 runs, and despite a minor recovery by Azmatullah Omarzai (17) and Noor ul Rahman (11), the team struggled to maintain its momentum. Nitish Reddy was particularly effective, taking three wickets for just one run in the 12th over, which shattered Afghanistan’s hopes of recovery.
For India, Nitish Reddy and Ravi Bishnoi each took three wickets, while Axar Patel claimed two wickets for just 9 runs in three overs. Jasprit Bumrah and Yash Thakur also contributed with one wicket each.
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