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Dawlat Zadran

AFTER their victory in the opening Twenty20 International, Afghanistan will look to finish their tour of Zimbabwe on a historic winning note. Afghanistan can complete a historic tour to Zimbabwe in style today as they look to add a T20 series triumph to their one-day international success.

The minnows claimed their first series victory against a full International Cricket Council member nation last week in Bulawayo, and used that momentum to take the opening game of their two T20s with Zimbabwe.

Mohammad Nabi and Najbullah Zadran guided them to victory in the first short-form match with an unbeaten 69-run partnership; their efforts coming after opener Mohammad Shahzad hit a quick-fire 34.

And it is not just with the bat where Afghanistan have impressed; medium pacer Dawlat Zadran has led the bowling attack superbly with 12 wickets on the tour so far.

Another three came in the first T20 and he will look to finish the series on a high with another match-winning display in Bulawayo.

“Psychologically, Zimbabwe are under a lot of pressure now, especially after losing the ODI series,” Zadran said ahead of today’s clash.

While the tourists are riding the crest of a wave, things are not going so well for Zimbabwe as they continue to experience batting troubles.

On a number of occasions during the tour, skipper Elton Chigumbura’s side has produced some solid bowling displays to limit their opponents. However, with the bat, it has been a different story.

In the second ODI, Zimbabwe lost seven wickets for 98 runs in their first collapse of the tour. Two games later, they found themselves 82/6 after a sluggish start and in the decider, only Sean Williams made an impact, scoring 102 of their 172-run total.

That trend continued in the opening T20 game as they struggled to add late runs, failing to convert an unbeaten century stand at the top of the order, and eventually limping to 153-5.

If they are to salvage anything from Afghanistan’s tour, they will need to see much more from their batsmen today, otherwise they face the ignominy of losing both series on home soil. — Online