Afghanistan's Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran shine in second successive match
What's the story
In the fourth match of the T20I Tri-Series at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Afghanistan set a challenging target of 170 runs for Pakistan. For the second successive match, Sediqullah Atal and Ibrahim Zadran bolstered the Afghanistan innings. After losing Rahmanullah Gurbaz early on, Atal and Zadran added a 113-run stand. Less than 24 hours ago, the duo starred in Afghanistan's win against the UAE.
Partnership
Afghanistan ride on Atal-Zadran stand
Electing to bat first, Afghanistan lost Gurbaz in the second over. Like the UAE game, Atal and Zadran steadied the ship with a century stand. They added 113 runs, taking the Afghans past 120. Both Atal (3 fours and 3 sixes) and Zadran (8 fours and 1 six) played 45 balls, scoring 64 and 65 runs, respectively. Faheem Ashraf dismissed the duo.
Stats
A look at notable stats
As per ESPNcricinfo, Atal raced to his second half-century in T20Is. In 12 T20Is, he has raced to 237 runs. His strike rate of 110.74 requires massive improvement. On the other hand, Zadran owns 1,242 runs from 47 T20Is at a strike rate of 110.30. He has the third-most 50-plus scores for Afghanistan in T20Is (10), behind Mohammad Shahzad (13) and Gurbaz (11).
Information
Record second-wicket stand for Afghanistan
As per Cricbuzz, Atal and Zadran registered the second-highest second-wicket stand for Afghanistan in T20Is, behind 137 runs between Ibrahim and Gurbaz against the UAE in 2023 (Sharjah).