IND vs AFG T20 series: India beat Afghanistan in double Super Over thriller to clean sweep series
Both teams scored 212 in their 20 overs in the 3rd T20 and were also tied in the first super over. Rohit Sharma became the first batter to score five hundreds in T20I cricket.
Cricket
It took the Indian men’s cricket team two Super Overs to beat Afghanistan in the final game of the three-match T20 series at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
With the win, India swept the T20I series 3-0. India won the first match in Mohali by six wickets and followed it up with another six-wicket win in Indore.
Afghanistan put up 16/1 in the first Super Over. Indian T20 captain Rohit Sharma, with two sixes, helped India tie the score.
With India batting first in the second Super Over, Rohit Sharma began a six and a four in the first two balls. However, Rinku Singh was caught behind for a duck and Rohit was run out in the very next ball as India ended on 11.
Ravi Bishnoi dismissed Mohammad Nabi off the first ball and Rahmanullah Gurbaz with the third to help India win the thriller.
Earlier in the day, riding on Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh’s power-hitting, India posted 212/4 after electing to bat first. India were 22/4 in 5 overs at one stage but Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh laced together a 190-run partnership to help India post a good score. It was India’s highest partnership for any wicket in the format.
Rohit Sharma notched up his highest T20 score of 121 in just 69 balls. He also became the first batter in T20 cricket history to register five centuries. Rinku Singh’s 69 came in 39 balls.
Led by Gulbadin Naib’s breezy 55 off 23, Afghanistan produced a stunning fightback to match India’s scores in their 20 overs.
India were rocked early as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli were dismissed on back-to-back deliveries in the third over. Shivam Dube edged one behind in the fourth over with India reduced to 21/3. Sanju Samson, facing his first ball in the fifth over, chipped one in the air only to be caught at cover.
Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh navigated the next few overs cautiously as India reached 61/4 at the 10-over mark.
Rohit Sharma upped the ante in the 12th over with two consecutive sixes. The Indian captain struck a reverse sweep for a boundary off leg-spinner Qais Ahmad in the next over to reach his half-century in 41 balls.
India were 109/4 in 15 overs. Rohit started the assault with a boundary towards the short fine leg which was followed by a pull shot for six. Rinku Singh continued to rotate strike sensibly and helped the scoring rate with occasional boundaries.
India were poised at 154/4 with two overs to go. Rohit Sharma then became the first batter to score five T20I hundreds in the 19th over. Rinku Singh reached his half-century with a maximum over long-off as the 19th over produced 22 runs.
Rohit Sharma started the final over bowled by Karim Janat with a boundary in the square leg region. A six off the no ball followed by a six off the free-hit propelled Rohit Sharma past his previous highest score of 118. A single followed by three consecutive sixes from Rinku Singh helped India end at 212/4 as the hosts scored 103 runs from the last five overs. The final over yielded 36.
Afghanistan started brightly with Rahmanullah Gurbaz scoring briskly at one end. Along with Ibrahim Zadran, Gurbaz helped visitors reach 85/0 in 10 overs. However, they were dismissed while trying to catch up with the scoring rate.
Afghanistan needed 105 runs in 42 balls. Gulbadin Naib and Mohammad Nabi brought Afghanistan back into the game with a 56-run partnership in just 22 balls. While Nabi was dismissed by Washington Sundar in the 17th over, Naib stayed unbeaten and scored 18 runs in the final over bowled by Mukesh Kumar to stretch the game to the Super Over.
Washington Sundar was India’s best bowler on the night with figures of 3/18 in 3 overs.
The match against Afghanistan in Bengaluru on Wednesday was India’s last T20 game before the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 scheduled in the West Indies and the USA this June.
India vs Afghanistan 3rd T20 brief scores: India 212/4 in 20 overs (Rohit Sharma 121, Rinku Singh 69; Fareed Ahmad 3/20) tied with Afghanistan 212/6 in 20 overs (Gulbadin Naib 55*, Rahmanullah Gurbaz 50; Washington Sundar 3/17).
Super over scores: First super over: Afghanistan 16/1 tied with India 16/1. Second super over: India 11/2 beat Afghanistan 1/2 by 10 runs.