Omarzai, Gurbaz steer Afghanistan to series-win over Bangladesh

Mohammad Abdullah, Senior Sports Reporter

Azmatullah Omarzai put up a stupendous all-round performance and Rahmanullah Gurbaz smacked his eighth ODI century as Afghanistan defeated Bangladesh in the final ODI by five wickets to clinch the three-match series 2-1 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Riding on Omarzai's four-wicket haul, Afghanistan restricted Bangladesh to 245/5 before reaching the target for the loss of five wickets with 10 balls to spare.

After taking four wickets, Omarzai smashed an unbeaten 77-ball 70 and added another vital 48 runs with Mohammad Nabi, who chipped in with a useful 34 off 27 balls.

Opener Gurbaz led the reply with a fighting knock. He set the tone for a successful chase.

Bangladesh handed ODI debut to the pacer Nahid Rana, who tested the openers with a ferocious fast bowling as he hit the deck with a speed of around 145km/hr continuously.

Gurbaz and Sediqullah Atal survived some anxious moments as Rana tested their mettle with a barrage of short-pitched deliveries. But they added 43 runs for the first wicket to give a sound start.

Rana completely choked the flow of runs before he bowled Atal to give Bangladesh first breakthrough.

Mustafizur Rehman got rid of Hashmatullah Shahidi and Rahmat Shah cheaply as Afghanistan were reduced to 84/3.

Gurbaz shared a 100-run partnership with Omarzai to keep the chase alive. Gurbaz took the charge in his hands as he did most of the scoring.

He smacked the eighth century of his ODI career. He brought up his century with a single off 115 deliveries.

Soon after reaching his ton, Gurbaz holed out to Sarkkar as Mustafizur picked up his third scalp of the day.  His innings featured seven sixes and five boundaries.

After the dismissal of Gurbaz, Omarzai started leading the chase. He kept Afghanistan afloat with a gritty knock. He raced to fifty with a scorching boundary off Rana. He remained unbeaten to take Afghanistan over the line, hitting three fours and five sixes during his stint at the crease.

Earlier, veteran batsman Mahmudullah proved his worth once again as he played another memorable knock at the fag end of his career. Mahmudullah missed his fifth ton of his ODI career by a whisker but helped Bangladesh post a fighting total. He came on the crease with just 72 runs on the board and top four batsmen back in the pavilion.

Mahmudullah, who has 234 ODIs under his belt, applied all his experience to mend the innings. Skipper Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Mahmudullah knuckled down to rebuild the innings. They were well aware of the fact that they were the last recognized batting pair and a mistake could cost them the series.
Both the batsmen played cautiously.

They kept the score ticking with singles and doubles and hit occasional boundaries to maintain the run rate.

Miraz played a sedate knock at a snail's pace which put the extra pressure on Mahmudullah to spur the run rate also. They shared a 145-run stand for the fifth wicket not only to frustrate the Afghanistan's bowlers but also guide Bangladesh to safety.

Miraz was dismissed by Omarzai, who returned to wipe the tail and finished with an impressive figure of 4/37 from seven overs. Mahmudullah waged the lone battle till the last ball of the innings. He flexed his muscles after reaching the double-run mark.

His blitzkrieg knock was studded with seven boundaries and three sixes. He was found short of the crease off the last ball of the match in a bid to steal a cheeky couple. Omarzai had Miraz and Jaker Ali caught before he uprooted the stumps of Nasum Ahmed to complete his four-wicket haul.

Earlier, both the openers gave Bangladesh a sound start as they added 53 runs for the first wicket. Both Tanzid Hasan and Soumya Sarkar played diligently and kept the Afghanistan bowlers at bay.

A star-studded Afghanistan bowling line-up looked clueless and failed to stop the flow of runs, leave alone taking the wickets. Bangladesh were looking set to post a huge total.

It is rightly said when everything is going according to the plan, it is an indication of some underlying problem. The same thing happened with Bangladesh's innings as it suddenly got off the track as they lost four wickets in quick succession.

Afghanistan made a miraculous comeback into the game with four quick dismissals. It was Azmatullah Omarzai who triggered the collapse.
Omarzai got rid of Sarkar to break the dangerous-looking partnership.

He rattled the stumps of Bangladeshi opener to bring some respite to the Afghanistan camp.

After the dismissal of Sarkar, Tanzi also could not last long as he was caught by Shahidi off the bowling of former captain Mohammad Nabi as Bangladesh lost their second wicket on the same score within a space of four deliveries.

After taking two wickets in quick succession, Afghanistan were buoyant and started attacking from both the ends. Zakir Hasan was found short of his crease while scrambling for a quick single.

There was a misunderstanding between Miraz and Zakir. The Bangladesh skipper first called Zakir then sent him back. An Agile Kharote made no mistake as he dismantled the bails with a direct hit to the stumps as Bangladesh were reduced from 51/0 to 58/3.

Bangladesh were in deep trouble and Afghanistan ace spinner Rashid Khan also sprang into action as he dismissed Towhid Hirdoy to heap more misery on the visitors, who were already reeling. Bangladesh had lost their fourth wicket. They needed a big partnership. Captain Miraz was on the crease, looking for a partner.