Live Cricket Score: Australia vs Afghanistan – One-off ODI match at Sharjah

Australia earlier won the toss and asked Afghanistan to bowl first © AFP

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By CricketCountry Staff

 

Sharjah: Aug 25, 2012

 

Australia take on an emerging Afghanistan team in the one-off one-Day international (ODI) match at Sharjah on Saturday.

 

Afghanistan became an International Cricket Council (ICC) affiliate member in 2001 and a national team was formed in the same year, when US-led forces invaded the country to oust the Islamist Taliban regime. Just nine years later, Afghanistan played at the 2010 ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean.

 

Afghanistan failed to qualify for the 2011 World Cup, but have ODI status until 2013 and have also qualified for this year’s World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka.

 

Cricket in Afghanistan was developed by refugees who learnt the game in camps in Pakistan.

 

Afghanistan’s top cricket official on Friday demanded more technical support from the cricket world to build on his team’s success.

 

The war-torn country will play their second one-day international against a full member country when they take on former world champions Australia on Saturday.

 

In February, Afghanistan’s first-ever one-dayer against Pakistan triggered a nation-wide frenzy with even the Taliban — who during their rule until 2001 banned all sports — sending a message of support.

 

Teams:

 

Afghanistan: Karim Sadiq, Javed Ahmadi, Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Nawroz Mangal (c), Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Asghar Stanikzai, Samiullah Shenwari, Gulbodin Naib, Dawlat Zadran, Shapoor Zadran

Australia: Matthew Wade (wk), David Warner, Michael Clarke (c), Michael hussey, David Hussey, George Bailey, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc, James Pattinson, Xavier Doherty

 

Click  to view ball-by-ball commentary & full score of the ODI match here