Afghanistan 242 for 3 (Omarzai 73, Rahmat 62, Shahidi 58*) beat Sri Lanka 241 (Nissanka 46, Farooqi 4-34, Mujeeb 2-38) by seven wickets
For the second game running Afghanistan showcased exemplary calm in the chase, whittling down a sub-par target of 242 with ice-cold composure. A trio of fifties from Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Azmatullah Omarzai led the way, as Afghanistan leapfrogged Sri Lanka into fifth place on the points table with six points now on the board.
Sri Lanka meanwhile are virtually out of the running for a semi-final berth, needing to essentially win all of their next three games – against India, Bangladesh and New Zealand – to stand any chance.
For Afghanistan this was a win set up by their bowlers, who had stifled Sri Lanka’s batters on a deck that was for all intents and purposes tailor-made for batting, before their batters ran down the target with minimal fuss.
Fazalhaq Farooqi was the pick of the bunch ending with figures of 4 for 34, but the most intriguing quirk of this game was that despite being afforded a true surface with a lack of lateral movement and minimal turn, both sides scored rarely scored at more than five an over.
Full report to follow…
Source: ESPN Crickinfo