Afghanistan win ODI Tri-Nation Series trophy, beat Zimbabwe in final
What's the story
Afghanistan have won the ODI Tri-Nation Seriestrophy, defeating Zimbabwe by seven wickets in the final match played at Sharjah. The Afghan team put up a stellar performance with both bat and ball throughout the tournament. In the final, they bowled out Zimbabwe for just 169 runs in 43.3 overs before chasing down the target comfortably in 34.3 overs. Ibrahim Zadran's unbeaten knock of 70 helped Afghanistan seal their victory with Hashmatullah Shahidi hitting the winning boundary in the 35th over.
Bowling feat
Rashid Khan stars with 3 wickets
Rashid Khan was Afghanistan's star bowler in the final, claiming three wickets for 41 runs.
He became the second bowler in ODI history to take three or more wickets in six consecutive innings, as per Cricinfo.
Fazalhaq Farooqi, Bilal Sami and Mohammad Nabi also contributed with two wickets each as Afghanistan's attack wreaked havoc on Zimbabwe's batting lineup.
Individual brilliance
Sikandar Raza scripts history with fighting 68
Despite the loss, Zimbabwe's captain Sikandar Raza stood tall with a fighting innings of 68 runs.
He became the first batter aged 40 years or more to score a 50 in an ODI tournament final.
However, his efforts weren't enough as Afghanistan's bowlers continued to take wickets at regular intervals, bundling out Zimbabwe for just 169 runs in their innings.
Besides Raza, Ryan Burl showed some character. He scored 31 runs and shared a 60-run stand alongside Raza.
Chase
Afghanistan get the job done
Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Zadran shared 68 runs for the opening wicket.
After Gurbaz got out, Sediqullah Atal also perished quickly, leaving Zimbabwe at 80/2.
Rahmat Shah and Zadran added 82 runs for the 3rd wicket.
Shah scored a valuable 63-ball 43. Shahidi and Zadran then completed the chase.
Zadran was unbeaten on a score of 70 off 96 balls.
For Zimbabwe, Newman Nyamhuri claimed 2 scalps.
Raza
Sikandar Raza hammers his 5th ODI fifty against Afghanistan
Raza's 68 off 83 balls had three fours and three sixes.
With this knock, he has amassed 4,824 runs from 162 ODIs (153 innings). Raza averages 37.39.
He smashed his 27th ODI fifty (100s: 7).
As per Cricinfo, he also completed 400 ODI fours.
Versus Afghanistan, Raza has scored 914 runs from 29 matches at 38.08. He recorded his 5th fifty (100s: 1).
Information
43rd fifty in List A cricket
Raza slammed his 43rd fifty in List A cricket. Playing his 267th match (252 innings), Raza owns 8,146 runs at an average of 37-plus. Besides his 43 fifties, he has also recorded 13 hundreds.
Rashid
Afghanistan's Rashid Khan surpasses 150 ODI wickets in Asia
Before this spell of 3/41, Rashid claimed 4/31 versus Bangladesh and 4/17 versus Zimbabwe in this series.
In 126 matches, Rashid has amassed 237 wickets at 18.9.
As per Cricinfo, Rashid has recorded 57 wickets against Zimbabwe from 26 matches at 13.45.
Notably, Rashid surpassed 150 ODI scalps in Asia (151). He averages 18.81 from 78 matches.
80 of his wickets in Asia have come in the UAE.
Information
Rashid Khan dismisses Sikandar Raza for 8th time (ODIs)
As per Cricinfo, Rashid has now dismissed Raza on 8 occasions in ODIs. From 15 innings, Raza has scored 128 runs off Rashid's bowling and has faced 183 balls. He averages 18 and his strike rate is 69.94.
Zadran
Zadran slams his 12th ODI fifty
Zadran's 70* had four fours and a six.
He now owns a tally of 2,304 runs from 49 ODIs at 51.2. He recorded his 12th fifty (100s: 7).
Versus Zimbabwe, Zadran has smashed 294 runs from 5 ODIs at 98. He owns 2 fifties and a hundred.
As many as 1,962 of Zadran's ODI runs have come in Asia. He averages 50.3 from 42 ODIs in Asia with 5 tons and 11 fifties.
Information
Shah scores a sublime 43
Shah's 43 had a four and one six. He consumed 63 balls. Shah now owns 4,417 runs from 135 ODIs at 36.20. Versus Zimbabwe, he has amassed 774 runs from 20 matches at 45.52.