Afghanistan’s spirits lifted after convincing 62-run win against Namibia

It was a convincing 62-run win over Namibia for Afghanistan but also an emotional day for the national team’s former captain Asghar Afghan, who was carried off the field after his final match before retirement.

Twenty-two year old Naveen-ul-Haq was named Man of the Match. He dedicated his award to Asghar.

Afghanistan won the toss and opted to bat first in Abu Dhabi in the third of their four Super 12 matches in the ICC T20 World Cup. After losing to Pakistan in their previous game, Afghanistan had hoped for a win against Namibia.

Their triumph Sunday was a bittersweet moment however as only hours earlier the team’s former captain and allrounder Asghar Afghan announced he would retire after the match.

“I will retire from all international cricket after the game against Namibia,” the 33-year-old said in a video message on Facebook.

Afghanistan meanwhile put on a dominant display which saw them crush Namibia by 62 runs to boost their semi-final hopes.

Chasing 161 after Afghanistan’s imposing effort, Namibia limped to 98-9 from 20 overs.

Hamid Hassan, who played his first international T20 since 2016, took a brilliant 3-9 and fellow seamer Naveen-Ul-Haq also shone with 3-26.

Hard-hitting openers Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Shahzad added 53 for the first wicket before captain Mohammad Nabi (32 not out from 17) and Asghar Afghan (31 from 23), boosted the total.

The victory keeps Afghanistan second on the table behind Pakistan. However, the team has played more games than India and New Zealand, who meet Sunday evening.

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