CPL 2026: Rahmanullah Gurbaz shines ahead of India T20I series
What's the story
Afghanistan batting sensation Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored a match-winning half-century for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2026 match against Jamaica Kingsmen at Providence Stadium. The opener paced his knock to perfection as the Warriors accomplished the 160-run target without much hassle. His performance came as a prelude to the much-anticipated three-T20I series against India, starting September 13. This half-century also powered the batter past 7,000 T20 runs and 450 sixes.
Match impact
A blazing knock from Gurbaz
Gurbaz, who opened alongside Mavendra Dindyal (33), made his intentions clear from the start.
He hit back-to-back boundaries in the second over itself to set the tone for his team's innings.
After Dindyal's dismissal in the fifth over, Gurbaz went on a boundary-hitting spree, scoring 17 runs off one over with three boundaries.
He reached his half-century in style by hitting spinner Vitel Lawes for a six down the ground.
Though Gurbaz was dismissed soon after completing his fifty, his team (160/2) achieved the target with 16 balls to spare.
Stats
7,000 runs in the format
Gurbaz smashed five fours and three sixes en route to his 54 off 35 balls.
As per Cricinfo, this was his 44th T20 fifty, as he also has four tons.
During his stay, Gurbaz also went past 7,000 runs in T20 cricket.
Having played 275 matches, Gurbaz has completed 7,026 runs at an average of 26.41 and a fine strike rate of 149.74 (Sixes: 450).
480 of his runs have come across 16 CPL games at 30. This includes four fifties (SR: 157.89).
Player stats
Gurbaz's exceptional T20 form this year
The 24-year-old Gurbaz is the leading run-scorer among Afghan players in T20 cricket this year.
He has scored 947 runs in 24 matches at an average of 41.17 and a strike rate of 179.69, including two centuries and seven fifties.
His stellar performance in both franchise and international cricket makes him a key player for Afghanistan in the upcoming India series.
The wicketkeeper-batter has tallied 2,280 runs across 87 T20Is at 26.20 (SR: 135.55).
Gurbaz has touched the 50-run mark 14 times, converting one of them into a ton.