Tilak Varma’s Fifty Powers India to T20I Series Clean Sweep Over Afghanistan
India went on to secure a 3-0 series win over Afghanistan after chasing down a target of 175 at Arun Jaitley Stadium. Tilak Varma played a composed knock of 58 after early wickets, as Shivam Dube kept the required rate under control.
Afghanistan’s total of 174/7 proved to be insufficient, despite Rashid Khan’s dominance with the ball.
Pitch and Weather
The match will be played at Arun Jaitley Stadium, which is expected to offer a good batting surface but the pitch could be slightly slower than the opening game. The shorter square boundaries will be able to reward stroke play, while spinners will be able to come into play during the middle overs. The powerplay will be able to provide decent pace and carry, but cutters and spinners will be effective when the ball gets old. Delhi’s warm evening conditions, with temperatures around 30°C, moderate humidity and light winds, should bring some dew later.
Toss
Afghanistan wins the toss and decides to bat first. Ibrahim Zadran backs his batting line-up to score well against India, before the pitch slows down.
Lineups
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran (C), Sediqullah Atal, Gulbadin Naib, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi
India: Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
Match Report
Afghanistan posted 174/7 after batting first, as the team negotiated against the new ball attack before accelerating against spin. Gurbaz went on to attack Arshdeep Singh early, but Jasprit Bumrah removed him in the second over. Ibrahim and Sediqullah Atal rebuilt the innings, which took the team to the score of 53/1 after six overs.
Bishnoi changed the tempo when he was handed the ball. He removed Atal who went for a sweep, while Naib also struggled to score runs against Axar Patel. Afghanistan slipped down to the score of 91/4 before Darwish Rasooli and Omarzai had a 51-run stand. Rasooli used the shorter square boundaries, as Omarzai used sweep to play with the Indian fielders.
The tactical move by Shreyas Iyer came when he brought Nitish Kumar Reddy to bowl. He conceded 13 runs, but was able to take the wicket of Rasooli. The dismissal halted Afghanistan to accelerate, as Nabi tried to rebuild. Omarzai lost his wicket against Bumrah after scoring 38, as Nabi scored 27 runs off 14 balls and Rashid Khan contributed with 14, which helped Afghanistan to reach beyond 170.
India started the chase aggressively, as Abhishek Sharma smashed 19 runs off the first over against Fazalhaq Farooqi. But Farooqi was able to respond well, as he removed both Samson and Abhishek in successive overs. Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma went on to steady the innings, before Noor Ahmad removed Kishan for 32.
The team required 66 runs from 42 balls, when Dube and Tilak attacked Afghanistan's seamers. Rashid conceded just five runs in his final over, but Dube smashed three boundaries against Mujeeb ur Rahman. Tilak lost his wicket against Nabi after scoring 58. But Dube finished the game with a six, as India scored 175/6 in 19.1 overs.
Player of the Match
Tilak Varma won the Player of the Match award for scoring 58 runs in the chase. His knock came at a time when the Indian team had lost its opening pair for cheap scores.
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