Sport
Desert Vipers win maiden ILT20 title after beating MI Emirates in final
England all-rounder Sam Curran struck an unbeaten 74 as Desert Vipers claimed their first International League T20 title, defeating MI Emirates by 46 runs.
Sent in to bat, the Vipers were reduced to 36-2 inside four overs before Curran steadied the innings with an 89-run stand for the third wicket alongside Max Holden, who scored 41 from 32 balls. Curran later added 57 with Dan Lawrence (23 off 15), who was run out on the final delivery. Curran’s 51-ball innings featured eight fours and two sixes.
Chasing the target, defending champions MI Emirates faltered early, slipping to 54-4. Pakistan pacer Naseem Shah claimed two of those wickets, including that of England’s Tom Banton, the hero of Qualifier 2 with a match-winning half-century.
MI Emirates never recovered and were eventually dismissed for 136 in 18.3 overs.
Curran ended the tournament as the leading run-scorer with 397 runs, while Afghanistan’s Waqar Salamkheil and UAE’s Ajay Kumar finished as joint top wicket-takers with 18 each.
Afghanistan’s U-15 national football team defeated India 2-1 in the quarter-finals of Tier C at the FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Azerbaijan on Thursday.
The match marked Afghanistan’s eighth appearance in the competition, with the young Afghan side recording their fifth victory.
Afghanistan will face Hungary in the semi-finals of the placement competition for positions 81 to 88 later on Thursday.
Afghanistan’s U-15 national football team secured a convincing 6-2 victory over Namibia in the Round of 16 of the lower bracket in Tier C at the FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Azerbaijan on Wednesday.
Afghanistan will now face India in the quarter-finals for positions 81 to 88, today (Thursday).
Afghanistan defeated Zimbabwe by 37 runs in the opening match of their three-match T20I series in Sharjah on Tuesday, thanks to a blistering half-century from Ijaz Ahmadzai and impressive all-round performances from Rashid Khan and Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Afghanistan were struggling at 66 for 5 in the 12th over before Ahmadzai turned the innings around with an explosive knock. He reached his half-century off just 20 balls, putting Zimbabwe’s bowlers under pressure with a series of powerful shots.
Ahmadzai combined with Shahidullah, who scored 46 off 42 balls, to rebuild the innings. The pair added 61 runs in just 4.5 overs, helping Afghanistan recover from their early setbacks.
Rashid Khan provided another late surge, smashing 30 runs off just 10 deliveries, including four sixes and a four. Afghanistan were eventually bowled out with one ball remaining in their innings but managed to post a competitive total of 177.
Newman Nyamhuri was Zimbabwe’s leading bowler, claiming four wickets for 31 runs.
In reply, Zimbabwe struggled against Afghanistan’s disciplined bowling attack and were bowled out for 140, handing Afghanistan a comfortable victory.
Rashid played a key role with the ball, taking two wickets for 20 runs, while Fazalhaq Farooqi also claimed three wickets to restrict Zimbabwe’s chase.
Afghanistan tightened their grip during the middle overs as Rashid and Mujeeb Ur Rahman struck crucial blows. Mujeeb finished with two wickets, while Zimbabwe continued to lose batters at regular intervals and failed to build the partnerships needed to challenge the target.
The victory marked Afghanistan’s sixth consecutive T20I win against Zimbabwe and improved their overall record in the format to 20 wins against two defeats.
The sides will meet again for their next T20I on Thursday.
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