Saif Hassan Stars as Bangladesh Clean Sweeps Afghanistan with a Commanding Win in 3rd T20I

With strong performances in bowling and batting, Bangladesh defeated Afghanistan in the 3rd T20I at Sharjah by 6 wickets. The tigers completed a clean sweep over Afghanistan by once again chasing the target confidently in the second innings. The star of the Bangladeshi batting remained Saif Hassan, who continued his fine form with the bat by scoring 64 off 38 balls.

Batting first, Afghanistan once again showcased a familiar type of struggle in the Powerplay. Their openers failed to capitalize on the first six overs, as Bangladesh bowlers picked quick wickets by bowling smartly. The star batter of Afghanistan, Ibrahim Zadran, opened the innings but failed to make an impact by getting out at just 7 runs in the 3rd over. Soon after him, Rahmanullah Gurbaz also lost his wicket in the 4th over, courtesy of some tight bowling by Nasum Ahmed.

These early blows brought a lot of pressure on the Afghanistan batting lineup, as they failed to build momentum in the game. Sediqullah Atal tried to build a partnership with Darwish Rasooli afterwards, but their scoring rate remained low.

Due to this, Afghanistan never looked comfortable going big in the first innings. They played cautiously during the middle overs, but lost back to back wickets in the 11th and 12th over when Bangladesh attacked them with aggressive spells.

Azmatullah Omarzai remained a disappointment for Afghanistan in the 3rd T20I as well. He couldn’t do much in the middle when Afghanistan needed someone to hit big sixes. Similarly, Mohammad Nabi didn’t look at his best, as he got out to Nasum Ahmed after making just 1 run.  

The fall of regular wickets broke the momentum; however, a late-order push by Mujeeb Ur Rahman gave Afghans some hope in the end. He played a fighting knock of 23 runs by smashing 4 boundaries in total. Due to his aggressive gameplay, Afghanistan managed to score 143 runs at the end of the first innings.

When Bangladesh came out to bat in the second innings, they didn’t have a good start either. The opener Parvez Hossain Emon lost his wicket in the 5th over when the score was just 24. However, after that, the tigers played cautiously. They ensured not to give more wickets by playing rash shots. Saif Hassan, who came out to bat at number 3, looked in complete control throughout the innings.

He took down the main Afghanistan bowlers in the middle overs by hitting big sixes. Due to his splendid batting, Bangladesh marched towards the target even though some quick wickets fell during the middle phase of the game. The star batter scored 64 runs off 38 balls, by smashing 2 fours and 7 sixes.

The tigers completed the chase within 18 overs, handing Afghanistan a third straight defeat at Sharjah. With this victory, they completed a clean sweep over Afghanistan that looked very shaky and disordered throughout the series.