Afghanistan won its opening game of the ACC Twenty20 Cup at Al Dhaid Cricket Village, Sharjah on Sunday by defeating China by nine wickets. China, playing its first international T20 match, put on a brave performance which was evident in its enthusiasm and strong fielding.
Electing to bat first, China batsmen choked under the Afghan pace attack losing crucial early wickets to be 11-4 in the fourth over. Hamid Hassan (4-5) produced an excellent bowling display to pick up quick early wickets and was well-supported by Shahpoor Zadran (2-11), Mohammad Nabi (2-2) and Samiullah Shenwari (2-1). China was dismissed for 36 with seven balls to spare with Song Jangyong (7 in 15 balls) and Ai Di (7 in 21 balls) top-scoring for the team.
In response, Afghanistan lost a quick early wicket with Noor Ali dismissed for nought off Wang Lei's (1-16) bowling. Karim Sadeq (26 in 12 balls) and Shahzad Mohammad (14 runs in 10 balls) then took advantage of the low total to finish the game in just four overs.
In the other game of the day, Kuwait beat Qatar comfortably by 65 runs to register its opening victory.
Put on to bat, Kuwait got a quick opening with openers Hisham Mirza (29 in 14 balls) and Yasser Idris (26 in 14 balls) powering the team to 76 in the sixth over before Rusharat Ali (2-29) dismissed both the openers. The batsmen kept the run-flow consistent with valuable contributions from Khalid Butt (23) and Azmatullah (19). Saad Khalid smashed an unbeaten half century to lift the Kuwaiti total to 195-5 in 20 overs.
Qatar's run-chase suffered an early set back with opener Umar Taj dismissed for nought by Khalid Butt. Sajjad Ahmed (29 in 19 balls), Rusharat Ali (25 in 16 balls) and Habib Zada (24 in 11 balls) pushed up the scores for Qatar but a strict performance from the bowlers kept the run flow in check. The side was dismissed for 130 runs in 17.5 overs with Khalid Butt (2-28) and Sanal Govind (2-16) being the pick of the bowlers for the team.
Qatar will next play Oman at Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Monday while Kuwait will meet Nepal at the same venue. Afghanistan will play Singapore while China will face Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Brief Scores:
At Al Dhaid Cricket Village, Sharjah:
Afghanistan v China
China 36 all out; 18.5 overs (Song Jangyong 7; Hamid Hasan 4-5)
Afghanistan 40-1; 4 overs (Karim Sadeq 26; Wang Lei 1-16)
Afghanistan won by nine wickets
Kuwait v Qatar:
Kuwait: 195-5, 20 overs (Saad Khalid 53 not out; Rusharat Ali (2-29)
Qatar: 130 all out, 17.5 overs (Sajjad Ahmed 29; Sanal Govind 2-16)
Kuwait won by 65 runs
Electing to bat first, China batsmen choked under the Afghan pace attack losing crucial early wickets to be 11-4 in the fourth over. Hamid Hassan (4-5) produced an excellent bowling display to pick up quick early wickets and was well-supported by Shahpoor Zadran (2-11), Mohammad Nabi (2-2) and Samiullah Shenwari (2-1). China was dismissed for 36 with seven balls to spare with Song Jangyong (7 in 15 balls) and Ai Di (7 in 21 balls) top-scoring for the team.
In response, Afghanistan lost a quick early wicket with Noor Ali dismissed for nought off Wang Lei's (1-16) bowling. Karim Sadeq (26 in 12 balls) and Shahzad Mohammad (14 runs in 10 balls) then took advantage of the low total to finish the game in just four overs.
In the other game of the day, Kuwait beat Qatar comfortably by 65 runs to register its opening victory.
Put on to bat, Kuwait got a quick opening with openers Hisham Mirza (29 in 14 balls) and Yasser Idris (26 in 14 balls) powering the team to 76 in the sixth over before Rusharat Ali (2-29) dismissed both the openers. The batsmen kept the run-flow consistent with valuable contributions from Khalid Butt (23) and Azmatullah (19). Saad Khalid smashed an unbeaten half century to lift the Kuwaiti total to 195-5 in 20 overs.
Qatar's run-chase suffered an early set back with opener Umar Taj dismissed for nought by Khalid Butt. Sajjad Ahmed (29 in 19 balls), Rusharat Ali (25 in 16 balls) and Habib Zada (24 in 11 balls) pushed up the scores for Qatar but a strict performance from the bowlers kept the run flow in check. The side was dismissed for 130 runs in 17.5 overs with Khalid Butt (2-28) and Sanal Govind (2-16) being the pick of the bowlers for the team.
Qatar will next play Oman at Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Monday while Kuwait will meet Nepal at the same venue. Afghanistan will play Singapore while China will face Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Brief Scores:
At Al Dhaid Cricket Village, Sharjah:
Afghanistan v China
China 36 all out; 18.5 overs (Song Jangyong 7; Hamid Hasan 4-5)
Afghanistan 40-1; 4 overs (Karim Sadeq 26; Wang Lei 1-16)
Afghanistan won by nine wickets
Kuwait v Qatar:
Kuwait: 195-5, 20 overs (Saad Khalid 53 not out; Rusharat Ali (2-29)
Qatar: 130 all out, 17.5 overs (Sajjad Ahmed 29; Sanal Govind 2-16)
Kuwait won by 65 runs
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