Minnows Afghanistan on Sunday scripted history as they defeated 2012 champions West Indies by six runs in their final group league encounter of the ICC World Twenty20 here to sign off on a memorable note.
West Indies failed to reach a target of 124 as the Associate nation were able to restrict them to 117 for eight.
The defeat does not change anything in final equations as West Indies have already qualified for the semifinals and also maintained their pole position in the table.
After a string of close losses, the Afghans kept their calm on Sunday to beat a fancied West Indies side, who looked formidable even in the absence of Chris Gayle.
There were emotional scenes all around after Afghanistan completed the formalities, prompting West Indian star Chris Gayle, who was rested today, to congratulate them and even pose for pictures with the victorious team.
Afghanistan scored 123/7 in 20 overs after being put into bat. Najibullah Zadran’s 40-ball 48 studded with four boundaries and a six was the reason for them reaching a fighting total after being down at 56 for five.
In reply, the Afghan bowlers maintained a disciplined line and length. It was heartening to see skipper Asghar Stanikzai toss up the ball to off-spinner Mohammed Nabi with West Indies needing 10 runs off the last over.
The off-break bowler kept it full and did not give any room to IPL big buy Carlos Brathwaite (13), who failed to get going in the first two balls.
In his desperation Brathwaite tried to hit it big but Man-of-the-match Najibullah covered a fair distance and maintained his balance while taking a diving catch.
Andre Fletcher (11 not out), who had retired hurt earlier, came in but the last three balls fetched only three runs.
The Afghan bowlers put up a lion-hearted show with an unforgettable moment being the delivery that pacer Hamid Hassan bowled to dismiss opener Johnson Charles (22).
He bowled one that jagged back after pitching at a fair click to breach the opener’s defences.
Leg spinner Rashid Khan bowled a googly to get rid of Marlon Samuels (6).
To Afghanistan’s credit, they did not let the partnership between Denesh Ramdin (18, 24 balls) and Dwayne Bravo (28, 29 balls) flourish. They added 41 runs but at the same time consumed 7.4 overs in the process which increased the pressure on the lower-order batsmen.
It went haywire from there on for West Indies but turned to be a fairytale ending for the bunch of 11 bravehearts from the war-torn country.
score board
AFGHANISTAN
Shahzad c Benn b Badree 24
Ghani b Badree 4
Stanikzai c Bravo b Badree 16
Naib c Bravo b Sammy 8
Shenwari c Sammy b Benn 1
N Zadran (not out) 48
Nabi c Samuels b Russell 9
Shafiq c Fletcher b Russell 4
Rashid (not out) 6
Extras (LB-2, W-1) 3
Total (for 7 wkts, 20 overs) 123
Fall of wickets: 1-8, 2-33, 3-50, 4-52, 5-56, 6-90, 7-103.
Bowling: Russell 4-0-23-2, Badree 4-0-14-3, Brathwaite 2-0-21-0, Benn 4-0-18-1, Bravo 4-0-28-0, Sammy 2-0-17-1.
WEST INDIES
Charles b Hassan 22
Lewis c Khan b Hamza 0
Fletcher (not out) 11
Samuels b Rashid 5
Ramdin st Shahzad b Rashid 18
Bravo lbw Nabi 28
Russell (run out) 7
Sammy c Shenwari b Naib 6
Braithwaite c Zadran b Nabi 13
Badree (not out) 2
Extras (LB-1, W-2, NB-2) 5
Total (for 8 wkts; 20 overs) 117
Fall of wickets: 1-17, 2-33, 2-34, 3-38, 4-79, 5-89, 6-98, 7-107, 8-114.
Bowling: Hamza 4-0-9-1, Nabi 4-0-26-2, Hassan 2.4-0-19-1, Rashid 4-0-26-2, Shenwari 4-0-22-0, Naib 1.2-0-14-1.
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