Sport
Afif, Mehidy help Bangladesh sink Afghanistan
Afif Hossain and Mehidy Hasan shared a record 174-run seventh-wicket stand as Bangladesh recovered from a top-order collapse to beat Afghanistan by four wickets in the first one-day international of a three-match series in Chittagong on Wednesday.
Afif hit an unbeaten 93 off 115 balls while Mehidy added 81 not out, helping Bangladesh reach 219-6 in 48.5 overs, after Afghanistan left-arm pace bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi’s opening-spell burst reduced the hosts to 18-4 inside five overs, AFP reported.
Spinners Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Rashid Khan took one wicket apiece to leave Bangladesh struggling at 45-6 before Afif and Mehidy turned the tide.
Earlier Mustafizur Rahman took 3-35 with Shoriful Islam (2-38), Shakib Al Hasan (2-50) and Taskin Ahmed (2-55) all making an impact as Bangladesh bowled out Afghanistan for 215 runs.
Despite the modest target, Bangladesh were in all sorts of trouble when Farooqi dismissed openers Tamim Iqbal (eight) and Liton Das (one) in the third over before nabbing Mushfiqur Rahim (three) and debutant Yasir Ali (zero) in the next.
Things turned worse for Bangladesh after Shakib Al Hasan dragged onto his stumps off Mujeeb Ur Rahman to depart for 10 and Rashid dismissed Mahmudullah for eight to leave Bangladesh in a precarious situation.
But Afif, who hit 11 fours and a six in his career-best knock, and Mehidy ensured there was no further damage, AFP reported.
Mehidy struck nine fours in his third ODI fifty, also his personal best innings, which came off 120 balls.
Their partnership surpassed Imrul Kayes and Mohammad Saifuddin’s 127 seventh-wicket record for Bangladesh, set against Zimbabwe in 2018.
“The way the youngsters played, unbelievable, (I am) very happy and proud,” said Bangladesh skipper Tamim.
“Afghanistan have a great spin attack and the way these two handled (them) was amazing.”
Farooqi, the most successful Afghanistan bowler, finished with 4-54 playing only his second ODI.
“Farooqi bowled well at the top. But I will give credit to their batsmen,” said Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi.
Afghanistan earlier lost regular wickets after they elected to bat first before Najibullah Zadran hit 67 runs to give their innings some respectability.
Rahmat Shah (34), skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (28) and Mohammad Nabi (20) got starts but could not convert them into a big score.
Zadran put on 63 runs with Nabi for the fifth wicket to help Afghanistan recover from 102-4.
Shoriful ended Zadran’s patient 84-ball knock in the penultimate over as Mahmudullah Riyad took the catch at long-on, AFP reported.
Mustafizur wrapped up Afghanistan’s innings three balls later – in 49.1 overs – with the wicket of Yamin Ahmadzai.
The second match of the series is due to be held at the same ground on Friday.
Afghanistan’s national cricket team defeated Ireland by three wickets on Monday in the third ODI of the five-match series in Belfast.
Afghanistan won the toss and elected to bowl first.
Ireland were bowled out for 206 runs in 46.3 overs, setting Afghanistan a target of 207 runs.
Rashid Khan and Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar claimed three wickets each for Afghanistan.
Afghanistan’s batters then produced a solid performance in the second innings, chasing down the target for the loss of seven wickets in 44.5 overs.
Afghanistan had also won the second match by 92 runs.
The fourth match between the two teams will be played on Wednesday, August 12, in Belfast, Ireland.
Fans can watch the fourth match live and exclusively in Afghanistan on Ariana Television.
Sorkh Poshan Khawafi are leading the Afghanistan Champions League U17 standings after week six, having collected 15 points from six matches.
According to the latest standings released by the Afghanistan Football Federation, Sorkh Poshan Khawafi have won five of their six matches and suffered one defeat. They have scored 22 goals and conceded just two, giving them a +20 goal difference.
Sarsabz Yashlar sit second with 14 points, following four wins and two draws, while Aino Mina are third, also on 14 points but with an inferior goal difference.
Arman FC are fourth with 12 points, followed by Khurasan Faryab with 10 points and Toofan Herat with eight.
In the lower half of the table, Ettifaq Khanzadah have six points, Abu Muslim FC have five, while Jawanan Perozi and Istiqlal Kabul are yet to earn a point after six matches.
Istiqlal Kabul have conceded 35 goals, the most in the competition so far, while Sorkh Poshan Khawafi have the tournament’s strongest attack with 22 goals.
The Afghanistan Champions League U17 is being contested by 10 teams and is being held at the Afghanistan Football Federation Stadium in Kabul.
Abasin Defenders produced a dominant bowling performance to defeat Kabul Zalmi in the second match of the Kabul Premier League on Saturday, August 8, at the Ayoubi Cricket Ground in Kabul.
Kabul Zalmi won the toss and elected to bat first, but their innings quickly unravelled as Abasin Defenders’ bowlers struck regularly.
Kabul Zalmi were bowled out for 63 in 7.2 overs, leaving Abasin Defenders with a modest target to chase.
Sediqullah Pacha was the standout performer for Abasin Defenders, claiming the Player of the Match award for his match-winning bowling performance.
Abasin Defenders chased down the target comfortably to secure a convincing victory and get their Kabul Premier League campaign off to a winning start.
The result followed the opening match of the tournament earlier on Saturday, when Pamir Stars defeated Shamshad Eagles by 116 runs.
The Kabul Premier League features six teams — Pamir Stars, Shamshad Eagles, Kabul Zalmi, Speenghar Warriors, Abasin Defenders and Band-e-Amir — competing in the 2026 tournament.
All matches are being broadcast live and exclusively on Ariana Television, allowing cricket fans across Afghanistan to follow the competition.
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