AFG vs NZ | New Zealand draw first blood in group of death with emphatic chase against Afghans in Chennai

Gantavya Adukia

ByGantavya Adukia,SportsCafe Editor

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New Zealand put up a clinical all-round display with both bat and ball to chase down Afghanistan's 182/5 with five wickets and 13 balls to spare, in their T20 World Cup opener in Chennai. Tim Seifert was the headline act with a 42-ball 65 after Gulabdin Naib's 35-ball 63 had sparked Afghan hopes.

‌Opting to bat first, Afghanistan opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz walked out with explicit intent to go hard but much like his partner Ibrahim Zadran struggled to time the ball early on the relaid Chepauk surface. The duo managed just 15 runs in the first three hours and four dots to begin Jacob Duffy's second over meant the pressure was piling on, until Gurbaz decided to break the shackles with an egregious scoop for six before flaying a four through midwicket. The Kiwis responded by bringing on Lockie Ferguson to cap off the powerplay and the express quick instantly struck by removing Zadran for less-than run-a-ball 10, before ending the over by castling Gurbaz with an exquisite slower one as the score read 44/2. James Neesham and Mitchell Santner kept up the good work thereafter with just 28 runs off the next four overs before Gulabdin Naib struck the second maximum of the innings with an emphatic slog sweep off Glenn Phillips. The big-hitter inflicted further damage with a four and a six off Neesham in the 13th as his partnership with Sediqullah Atal blossomed. Another maximum off Duffy a couple overs later saw Naib bring up a 28-ball half-century, only for the quick to get the better of Atal for 29 the very next delivery. Nevertheless, the arrival of Darwish Rasooli only added further impetus to the Afghan effort as he took Ferguson for 15 in the 17th over, forcing Santner to go left-field and introduce Rachin Ravindra into the game. His first ball was duly dispatched 90 metres long by Naib but the Kiwi had the last laugh as his counterpat holed out for a 35-ball 63 the very next ball. Rasooli also departed the very next over but quick cameos from Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammed Nabi worth 14 off seven each took Afghan to a competitive 182/6 in their allotted quota of 20.

In response, the Black Caps began with aplomb as Tim Seifert struck three boundaries in the first over bowled by Fazalhaq Farooqi to get the chase underway. However, the Afghans delivered a stunning riposte through Mujeeb Ur Rahman, the mystery spinner sounding Finn Allen and Rachin Ravindra on successive deliveries to take the Asian side into ascendancy. Seifert made sure the wickets did not impact the Kiwis' ability to take advantage of field restrictions as he smashed Farooqi for 13 more upon his return to the attack, while Glenn Phillips at the other end struck four boundaries in the powerplay himself to take the six-over score to a promising 52/2. Phillips remained unfettered still when skipper Rashid Khan came on, a six and a four off him culminating in a 14-run over followed by back-to-back boundaries off Omarzai. Just as the rapidfire 74-run partnership was threatening to take the game away from the Afghans, Phillips chopped on a full Rashid delivery to depart for 42 off 25 to leave 91 required in the final 10 overs. The Afghan skipper had an opportunity to make it two in two overs when Seifert struck one straight back at him but after three juggles, the Kookaburra refused to stick to his hand and the chance went begging. Seifert capitalized by welcoming Nabi with two maximums and a four enroute to a 39-ball half-century, albeit the veteran bowler had the last laugh when the opener ultimately holed out at square-leg for 65. Nevertheless, his blitz had brought the required run rate down from nearly nine and a half to eight, and became nearly run-a-ball after Mark Chapman took 15 off Mujeeb's final over, the 15th of the innings. Omarzai threatened to re-introduce some jeopardy by scalping the batting in the following over while conceding just four, but Santner effectively put the game to bed with a four and six against Ziaur Rahman. With 13 required off 18, the Kiwis took just four balls to seal a five-wicket win, thus subjecting Afghanistan to their first ever unsuccessful defence of a 175-target in 27 attempts in T20Is.

NZ Won!

Well played!

Brilliant chase!

Highest successfull chase!

DDDDD

Won by 5 wickets!

Afg vs Nz

NZ defated AFG

haha!

Oh

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