IND vs AFG 2nd T20I: India has defeated Afghanistan by 7 wickets in the second T20 match. With this victory, Team India has clinched the three-match T20 series with a 2-0 lead. In the match played at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium, Afghanistan batted first and scored 159 runs. In response, Team India easily chased down the target with 31 balls to spare, losing 3 wickets in the process. For Team India, Sanju Samson played a blistering innings of 57 runs, while Abhishek Sharma scored 39 runs. Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan remained unbeaten on 38. For Afghanistan, Rashid Khan claimed 3 wickets but could not steer his team to victory.
Explosive 88-run partnership between Sanju and Abhishek
Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma opened the innings for the Indian team as they set out to chase the target of 160 runs set by Afghanistan. Both batsmen dominated the Afghan bowlers right from the powerplay. By sharing an 88-run partnership for the first wicket in the opening six overs, Sanju and Abhishek effectively sealed the win for Team India.
However, in the seventh over, Rashid Khan briefly slowed down the scoring rate by sending both Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson back to the pavilion. He dismissed Abhishek Sharma on the very first ball of the over; Abhishek scored 39 runs off 19 balls, including 2 fours and 4 sixes. He then dismissed Sanju Samson on the final ball of the over. Sanju Samson played a whirlwind innings of 57 runs off just 22 balls, hitting 7 fours and 2 sixes.
Subsequently, Rashid Khan dealt a third blow to Team India by dismissing Shreyas Iyer, who was caught brilliantly by Ibrahim Zadran. Shreyas Iyer was out for 11 runs off 11 balls. Subsequently, Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma remained unbeaten, steering Team India to victory. Ishan played an unbeaten knock of 38 runs off 23 balls, featuring three fours and two sixes, while Tilak Varma scored an unbeaten 15 off 14 balls, including one four.
Afghanistan’s batting performance
Batting first after losing the toss in this second T20I against India, Afghanistan scored 159 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in their allotted 20 overs. Captain Ibrahim Zadran was the top scorer for Afghanistan with 37 runs, while Rashid Khan played a blistering innings of 28 runs. Additionally, Darwish Rasooli scored 26 runs, and Mohammad Nabi contributed 20 runs. Towards the end, Noor Ahmad (7) and Mujeeb-ur-Rahman (4) remained unbeaten. For India, Nitish Kumar Reddy, returning from injury, bowled a lethal spell and claimed 3 wickets, while Arshdeep Singh took 2 wickets. Jasprit Bumrah, Ravi Bishnoi, and Axar Patel claimed one wicket each.
Brief scores: Afghanistan 159/8 in 20 overs (Ibrahim Zadran 37 off 33, Rashid Khan 28 off 16; Nitish Kumar Reddy 3-24, Arshdeep Singh 2-35) lost to India 163/3 in 14.5 overs (Sanju Samson 57 off 22, Abhishek Sharma 39 off 19, Ishan Kishan 38* off 23; Rashid Khan 3-36) by 7 wickets.
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