Samuel Badree’s 3-wicket haul restricts Afghanistan to 123 for 7 against West Indies in T20 World Cup 2016

Najibullah Zadran top scored for Afghanistan with his unbeaten 48-run knock.

Samuel Badree has taken three wickets as West Indies have restricted Afghanistan to a paltry 123 for 7 in T20 World Cup 2016. West Indies won the toss and elected to bowl first. Afghanistan lost their first wicket in the form of Usman Ghani, who scored just four runs. He misjudged a Badree’s googly and was bowled. After four overs, Afghanistan were 27 for the loss of one wicket. West Indies had used four different bowlers— Andre Russell, Samuel Badree, Carlos Brathwaite and Sulieman Benn. Windies made the fifth bowling change the next over as their skipper Darren Sammy handed the ball to Dwayne Bravo. Five runs came off his first over. He basically dealt with cutters, slower and full deliveries.  LIVE SCORECARD: West Indies vs Afghanistan, ICC World T20 2016, Match 30 at Nagpur

The Caribbeans then drew second blood off the final ball of the sixth over. Mohammad Shahzad danced down the track off Badree’s bowling. He attempted a big shot over mid-off but was not able to get the elevation he wanted. Suleiman Benn took an easy catch to dismiss him for 24. Asghar Stanikzai and Gulbadin Naib were at the crease then with Afghanistan batting on 38 for 2. West Indies bowlers used variations to good effect as and when it was required. Their line and length was quite brilliant through a large part of the innings till that time. After 10 overs, Afghanistan could only reach  52, and they had lost three wickets in the endeavour. LIVE BLOG: West Indies vs Afghanistan, T20 World Cup 2016, 30th Match at Nagpur

The third wicket to fall was of Afghanistan captain Asghar Stanikzai. Owing to restrictive bowling by Sulieman Benn, Stanikzai was not able to open his arms. He perished in an attempt to clear the ropes after being patient for long. When it appeared that it was getting very difficult for Afghanistan batters, they lost their fourth and fifth wicket in the 10th and 11th over respectively. Afghanistan were in shambles at that point with half their side back in the dugout and with only 57 runs on board. Najibullah Zadran and Mohammad Nabi tried to steady the ship with their sensible stroke play though the damage was already done and there was precious little they could do.

They took Afghanistan to 78 for 5 after the end of 15 overs. With only 30 balls remaining, it was anticipated that they may find it difficult going past even 110. Andre Russell broke the 34-run partnership as he got Nabi out for nine off the third ball of the 17th over. Shafiqullah Shafiq was the seventh wicket to fall when the scorecard read 103 in 18.1 overs. In the final 11 balls, Afghanistan scored 20 runs and were able to post only 123 for the loss of seven wickets. Najibullah Zadran carried his bat through the innings falling just two short off his half century.

Brief Scores:

Afghanistan 123 for 7 in 20 overs (Mohammad Shahzad 24, Najibullah Zadran 48*; Samuel Badree 3 for 14, Andre Russell 2 for 23) vs West Indies

(Bhaskar Narayan is a reporter at CricketCountry and Criclife. He passionately follows the game and is a big fan of Sachin Tendulkar. His Twitter handle is @Cricopathy)

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