Published: Feb 19, 2016, 02:52 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 30, 2016, 07:58 PM (IST)
Good Afternoon! Hello and Welcome to CricketCountry’s live coverage of first match of the Asia Cup Qualifiers between Afghanistan and United Arab Emirates at Fatullah. I am Suraj Choudhari, and I will be bringing to you the live updates of all the cricketing action for today’s clash. The 2016 Asia Cup qualifier is a qualifying round for the prestigious Asia Cup tournament. The qualifiers will be played in Bangladesh between the four associate nations of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Twenty20 International (T20I) status. Afghanistan, Hong Kong, Oman and United Arab Emirates will take on each other from February 19 to 22 in a tournament which will be played in round-robin format. Live Cricket Score, Afghanistan vs United Arab Emirates, Asia Cup T20 2016 Qualifiers, Match 1 at Fatullah
Live Cricket Score, AFG 160 all out in 19.5 overs | BATTING: Rashid Khan 3(3): The match took many twists and turns as it went down till the final over. Karim Sadiq looked lethal with the bat and looked to take the game away from UAE but it wasn’t to be as he was dismissed in the 19th over. UAE registered a fine victory as they have successfully defended the target and won the contest by 16 runs. Rohan Mustafa had a great outing with the bat and contributed with three wickets with the ball too. He got rid of the tail and hammered the final nail in the coffin. UAE bowlers did a remarkable job with the ball as Afghanistan had enough firepower to chase down the target. UAE will be pretty satisfied with their outing but need to pay attention on their batting order as they got off to a terrific start after which their batsmen stumbled in the middle. Aghanistan will OUT! Najibullah Zadran run out (Patil) 21(14)
OUT! Karim Sadiq b Mohammad Naveed 72(48)
OUT! Dawlat Zadran b Rohan Mustafa 9(4)
OUT! Shapoor Zadran b Rohan Mustafa 0(1)
OUT! st Patil b Rohan Mustafa 4(2)
Live Cricket Score, AFG 109/5 in 15 overs | BATTING: Karim Sadiq 58(41), Najibullah Zadran 2(2): Another one bites the dust for Afghanistan as Mohammad Nabi has been dismissed by Farhan Ahmed. Afghanistan in deep trouble at the moment and in a delicate situation. The required run rate is now over 13 and will require a valiant performance by their batsmen to breach the target. Anything possible at the moment as T20 is a game of uncertainties and things can turn in a span of an over. UAE bowlers need to get their length right in the death overs. With five overs to be played and Afghanistan requiring more runs one can expect an action packed final phase of the match. Gulbadin Nail also has been dismissed for 5 as Afghanistan find themselves in deep trouble at the moment. OUT! Mohammad Nabi c Shaiman Anwar b Farhan Ahmed 23(18)
OUT Gulbadin Naib c Patil b Ahmed Raza 5(7)
Live Cricket Score, AFG 74/3 in 10 overs | BATTING: Karim Sadiq 35(24), Mohammad Nabi 20(14): Afghanistan not finding a way out as they have lost another wicket and the run-rate is just on the rise. Asghar Stanikzai has been dismissed by Amjad Javed as the latter cleaned his stumps. With 10 overs more to go Afghanistan need more 103 runs with seven wickets in hand. UAE bowlers doing a commendable job with ball and is surely creating an upset here. They need to continue what they’ve been doing as the ball is in their court at the moment. OUT! Asghar Stanikzai b Amjad Javed 6(9)
Live Cricket Score, AFG 32/2 in 5 overs | BATTING: Asghar Stanikzai 2(7), Karim Sadiq 19(10): Afghanistan got off to a rocky start as they lost early wickets which didn’t help the cause. Afghanistan lost the likes of Mohammad Shahzad and Usman Ghani in first two overs and lost the momentum at the start. Mohammad Naveed and Farhan Ahmed accounted for a wicket each and got their team to a desirable start. Afghanistan need a quite partnership of 50 runs at a brisk pace to get into the match. The required run rate is climbing with every over and further adding pressure on the batting side. Asghar Stanikzai and Karim Sadiq are out in the middle and trying their best to bail their team out of crisis. Read: Asia Cup 2016: Afghanistan may shock big guns
OUT! Mohammad Shahzad b Farhan Ahmed 6(8)
OUT! Usman Ghani c Rohan Mustafa b Mohammad Naveed 3(6)
Innings break
Live Cricket Score, UAE 176/4 in 20 overs | BATTING: Usman Mushtaq 23(20), Mohammad Shahzad 25(16): UAE certainly lost the plot in the middle as they lost wickets in abundance. Afghanistan bowlers did a commendable job as they managed to chip wickets just at the moment when UAE batsmen were about to shift gears. They still have a fighting total on the board but after the kind of start which they got they are definitely short of 20 odd runs. Afghanistan will be pleased with their performance and they have enough ammunition in their cannon to chase down the target. Rashid Khan was the pick of the bowlers as he had three scalps to his name. Rohan Mustafa played a memorable knock but the middle-order let their team down.
Live Cricket Score, UAE 128/4 in 15 overs | BATTING: Usman Mushtaq 3(6): Afghanistan bowlers have made a comeback with their double strike as both the set batsmen have been dismissed. The game is evenly balanced at the moment. Rohan Mustafa now holds the record for highest individual score for UAE in T20Is as he surpassed Amjad Javed’s tally of 76 runs. The pitch is conducive for batting and UAE batsmen still have enough gun powder in their cannon to score massive runs in the death. Another wicket has been fallen in the form of Amjad Javed and UAE in all sorts of trouble at the moment. With five overs more to go expect some fireworks as the foundation for a big score has been laid. UAE losing their way in the middle and need to fire and make the most of their good start. OUT! Shaiman Anwar c Dawlat Zadran b Rashid Khan 11(10)
OUT! Rohan Mustafa c Shapoor Zadran b Amir Hamza 77(50)
OUT! Amjad Javed lbw b Rashid Khan 4(5)
Live Cricket Score, UAE 99/1 in 10 overs | BATTING: Rohan Mustafa 60 (37), Shaiman Anwar 7 (4): UAE were batting beautifully in the middle but lost a wicket in the form of Muhammad Kaleem as Rashid Khan got the better of him with a beauty. The duo recorded the highest partnership for any wicket for UAE in T20Is. the previous best was of 67 between Khurram Khan and SP Patil vs Netherlands in 2013-14. Mustafa and Kaleem accounted for 83 runs at the top and scripted history. Afghanistan have broken the partnership and got the much needed breakthrough but need to put brakes on the accelerator as UAE are scoring runs at a brisk pace and a total of 200 looks on the cards. Shaiman Anwar has walked out in the middle and now has a job in hand. Rohan Mustafa scored a tenacious fifty which is also the third for UAE in T20Is after Amjad Javed (76) and Shaiman Anwar (54). OUT! Muhammad Kaleem b Rashid Khan 25(19)
Live Cricket Score, UAE 50/0 in 5 overs | BATTING: Rohan Mustafa 35 (20), Muhammad Kaleem 14 (10): UAE got off to a flying start after electing to bat first. Their openers have stuck to their guns and came out all guns blazing as they took on the bowling attack with ease. Afghanistan bowlers trying their best to chip a wicket but UAE batsmen not providing any room for error. UAE have defied all the odds and displayed an alluring performance at Fatullah. This is going to an interesting encounter as both the teams will aim to kick off the tournament with a win. The pitch looks good for batting and one can expect massive runs being scored at this venue.
Toss: UAE won the toss and elected to bat first
This is the first time in the history of Asia Cup that the tournament will be played in Twenty20 (T20) format. Six matches will be played between the associate teams and the winner will join India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the main event which will commence from February 24. The first game between Afghanistan and United Arab Emirates will be a crucial one as any team can’t afford to put a foot wrong in the entire series. Afghanistan have had a great run in the recent times and have played with immense confidence. They are undoubtedly the favourites going into the tournament but all teams are well polished and the encounter will be electrifying. UAE on the other hand, too have enough ammunition in their cannon to create an upset. This is the first game and one can expect the intensity to be on the rise as the tournament progresses. Every team will play three matches and the team at the top of the points table will advance to the tournament. Expect a run fest at Fatullah when these two battle for a place in the tournament.
Squads:
Afghanistan: Asghar Stanikzai (captain), Noor Ali Zadran, Mohammad Shahzad (wicketkeeper), Usman Ghani, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Sadiq, Shafiqullah, Rashid Khan, Amir Hamza, Dawlat Zadran, Shapoor Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Samiullah Shenwari, Najibullah Zadran, Yamin Ahmadzai.
United Arab Emirates: Amjad Javed (captain), Mohammad Kaleem, Rohan Mustafa, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammad Shahzad, Swapnil Patil (vice-captain and wicketkeeper), Usman Mushtaq, Ahmed Raza, Zaheer Maqsood, Mohammad Naveed, Farhan Ahmed, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammad Usman, Fahad Tariq, Saqlain Haider.
