T20 World Cup, IND vs AFG as it happened: India beat Afghanistan by 66 runs to boost net run-rate

India captain Virat Kohli (not verbatim): “It was a much better wicket, to be fair. T20 cricket is a very instinctive game, we make a lot of decisions on the go. We are looking very optimistically at what lies ahead. NRR was on our minds, we are going to look at the positive and hunt that chance (of qualifying) down. I think the return of Ash (pleased me the most), when he can bowl like that you can control the middle overs.”

Player of the match Rohit Sharma (74 off 47): “It was a conscious effort to get off to a good start. Exceptional batting by KL Rahul as well. We knew heading into this game that NRR will come into play, we wanted to win by a big margin. I have to do whatever the team needs me to.”

11.11 pm: Pandya gets hit for six off the last ball by Janat (42* off 22) as Afghanistan finish with 144/7. However, the big win means India’s NRR is in the positive now!

India win by 66 runs

What an effort by Jadeja… TV umpire ruled that the ball hit the ground.

AFG 126/7 after 18.3 overs: OUT! Shami has two in three! Janat survived after an absolute screamer of a catch from Jadeja was disallowed because the ball seemed to hit the ground on impact, but Rashid departs first ball as Hardik takes the catch at long-on.

AFG 126/6 after 18.1 overs: OUT! Shami gets Nabi! The skipper goes for another big hit but finds Jadeja in the deep. He departs for 35 off 32.

AFG 125/5 after 18 overs: Six and four! Thakur continues to leak runs as Nabi goes after him. The right-hander hits a six down the ground and then pulls one in the gap for four. Thakur has figures of 0/31 from three overs. This late flourish by Afghanistan is hurting India’s NRR.

AFG 109/5 after 17 overs: Expensive over from Bumrah, he concedes two fours and also bowls two wides. The right-arm pacer returns with figures of 1/25 from his four overs. Afghanistan need 102 off 18.

AFG 98/5 after 16 overs: SIX! Stunning shot for Janat! Thakur bowls it on the pads and the right-hander flicks it a long, long way. Ten runs come from that over.

AFG 88/5 after 15 overs: Bumrah returns to the attack and bowls a quiet over, just three singles from it. Afghanistan aren’t really looking for boundaries at the moment, they need 123 off 30.

AFG 85/5 after 14 overs: Ashwin finishes with fantastic figures of 2/14 from his four overs. The senior off-spinner, making a comeback to India’s T20 side after years, didn’t concede a single boundary and showcased his wide repertoire of variations.

At 80/5, seems it is at least worth a mention... India can actually overhaul Afghanistan’s NRR in this match if they restrict them to 99.

AFG 80/5 after 13 overs: Janat plays a lap sweep and Afghanistan get a welcome boundary. Ten runs come from Jadeja’s third over.

AFG 69/5 after 11.5 overs: OUT! Ashwin gets his second wicket! Najib attempts a reverse sweep but gets clean bowled. Smart bowling from the off-spinner, the left-hander walks back for 11 off 13. The new batter is Karim Janat.

AFG 66/4 after 11 overs: Thakur beats Nabi’s outside edge with a wonderful delivery. Five runs come from the right-arm pacer’s first over. Afghanistan need 145 off 54.

AFG 59/4 after 9.3 overs: OUT! Ashwin strikes! He flicks one through quickly and it hits Gulbadin plumb in front. The right-hander attempted a sweep but yorked himself. He departs for 18 off 20.

AFG 58/3 after 9 overs: SIX! Jadeja bowls it in the slot and Najib goes bang! Clean strike from the left-hander over long-on.

AFG 51/3 after 8 overs: Ashwin starts his spell nicely, just two singles come from his first over. Afghanistan have Gulbadin Naib and Najibullah Zadran at the crease, they need 160 off 72.

AFG 48/3 after 6.5 overs: OUT! Jadeja strikes in his first over! Gurbaz (19 off 10) attempts another big hit but Hardik pulls off a fantastic catch at the boundary. The ball went high and he kept his eyes on it throughout.

AFG 47/2 after 6 overs: Two fours! Hardik joins the attack and drifts on to Gulbadin’s pads twice and gets clipped for boundaries by the right-hander. A strong end to the powerplay for Afghanistan. They need 164 off 84.

AFG 38/2 after 5 overs: Massive over for Afghanistan! Shami given a third over in this spell and he concedes 21 runs. Gulbadin gets an outside edge for four before Gurbaz hits consecutive sixes and a four. Superb batting from the young right-hander.

AFG 17/2 after 4 overs: Gurbaz gets struck on the head by Bumrah but thankfully, he’s good to carry on. The end of another successful over for India.

AFG 13/2 after 3.1 overs: OUT! India have two in two! This time Zazai (13 off 15) skies it and Thakur takes the catch. Bumrah with a superb slower ball to induce the false shot.

AFG 13/1 after 3 overs: OUT! Brilliant bowling from Shami and Shahzad is gone for a four-ball duck! The right-hander tried to work it to the leg side but got a leading edge, Ashwin made no mistake at mid-off. A wicket and a single in that over.

AFG 12/0 after 2 overs: SIX! Stunning shot from Zazai! Bumrah bowls it full and fast, the left-hander powers it over mid-wicket for a maximum. There was hardly any follow through of the bat, just brute force and pure timing. But Bumrah, too, does well to concede just a single off the remaining five deliveries.

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AFG 5/0 after 1 over: Zazai cuts one past point for four but Shami does well to concede just a single off the other five balls. There’s movement on offer with the new ball.

If India do end up winning tonight, they can improve their NRR to 0.149 from -1.609 by keeping Afghanistan to 140. (Afghanistan’s NRR comes down from 3.097 to 1.431)

9.30 pm: We’re ready for the chase in Abu Dhabi! Mohammed Shami has the new ball in hand. Here we go!

India finish with 210/2

Pant (27* off 13) hits a six and a four in the final over and Pandya (35* off 13) adds another four. Hassan finishes with 0/34. This is India’s second highest total in T20I cricket.

IND 194/2 after 19 overs: Najib Zadran drops Pandya and the right-hander ends up punishing Afghanistan for it! He slaps a short ball over cover for six (stunning shot) and follows that up with another six down the ground. This is the highest team total of the tournament so far. Naveen finishes with forgettable figures of 0/59 from his four overs.

IND 175/2 after 18 overs: Pandya gets going! Three fours for the right-hander, all of them past deep mid-wicket. He seems to have finally got his timing back. Hassan bowled two fine overs at the start of his spell but this one was expensive. India will be eyeing that 200-run mark.

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IND 160/2 after 17 overs: Back-to-back one-handed sixes from Pant! The left-hander makes it look so easy. Gulbadin was in the middle of a good over but Pant ends it with a bang. India needed that push to keep up the momentum.

IND 147/2 after 16.3 overs: OUT! Gulbadin strikes (and flexes his biceps)! Rahul attempts a scoop but yorks himself to get bowled. The right-hander walks back for a brilliant 69 off 48. The new batter is Hardik Pandya.

IND 145/1 after 16 overs: Pant survives twice! He gets truck in front and Afghanistan take the review but it shows the ball pitching outside leg. The left-hander then gets struck in front again and this time he takes the review, which shows a big inside edge. Rashid returns with figures of 0/36 from his four overs.

IND 140/1 after 14.4 overs: OUT! Karim Janat strikes and Afghanistan finally get the breakthrough! Soft dismissal for Rohit as he hits one straight to cover. That’s the end of a fantastic innings, the right-hander walks back for 74 off 47. The new batter is Rishabh Pant.

IND 135/0 after 14 overs: Back-to-back maximums! Rohit goes after Rashid! The right-hander steps out and doesn’t get to the pitch of the ball but manages to hoick it over mid-wicket for six. He then ends the over with a superb sweep that sails over as well. The Indian openers are on fire!

IND 119/0 after 13 overs: Rahul starts that Gulbadin over with a four and ends it with a four. India are motoring along in Abu Dhabi. The openers have got half-centuries and with 10 wickets in the bag, they’re going hell for leather now.

Fifty for Rahul! He gets his 13th half-century in T20Is off off 35 balls. Another classy four for the right-hander, this time off Gulbadin over cover.

IND 107/0 after 12 overs: Fourth century partnership between Rohit and Rahul in T20Is! Rohit cuts one for four, Rahul pulls one for six, and finally Rohit edges one over short-third for four. Another expensive over from Naveen, the right-arm pacer has figures of 0/40 from three overs.

Fifty for Rohit Sharma! He gets to his 23rd T20I half-century off 37 balls. The right-hander has played some exquisite strokes tonight, India need him to keep going.

IND 91/0 after 11 overs: Rohit plays a superb ramp shot for four but Gulbadin still delivers a fine over, just six runs from it. The right-arm pacer has figures of 0/12 from two overs. The over ends with Rahul getting a painful blow on his ribs.

IND 85/0 after 10 overs: Expensive over from Rashid! Rahul sweeps one past short-fine for four before Rohit plays an uncharacteristic, fine reverse-sweep past short-third for three. Eleven runs come from that over.

IND 74/0 after 9 overs: Four! Rahul breaks the shackles and plays a well-placed sweep wide of short-fine for a boundary. Rohit then backs away in search for a big hit but gets cramped for room and picks up a single. Another expensive over from left-arm spinner Sharafuddin Ashraf.

IND 65/0 after 8 overs: Hat-trick of economical, boundary-less overs for Afghanistan. Rashid, as he always does, wastes no time in finding his rhythm and concedes just six runs in his first over.

IND 59/0 after 7 overs: Another good over for Afghanistan, this time Gulbadin concedes just six runs in his first over. Rohit moves on to 36 off 26, Rahul is on 22 off 17.

IND 53/0 after 6 overs: Hassan bowls an outstanding over, just a single from it. Rohit will be disappointed he played five consecutive dot balls. But that was an impressive powerplay by India. Afghanistan have Rashid’s four overs to come but India have a solid base now.

IND 52/0 after 5 overs: Rohit goes big! He misses out on a free hit but makes up for it with a four over backward point, followed by a six over mid-off, and finally a four over cover. The right-hander is in all-out attack mode.

IND 35/0 after 4 overs: Solid start from Hassan, just five runs come from his first over. The right-arm pacer has a short run-up but generates considerable pace.

IND 30/0 after 3 overs: Right-arm pacer Naveen joins the attack and concedes seven runs in his first over. He bangs one in and Rohit pulls it powerfully for four.

IND 23/0 after 2 overs: Big over! Left-arm spinner Ashraf comes on to bowl and the Indian openers decide to go after him. Rohit starts off with a lap sweep for four, Rahul then thumps one over mid-on for six and follows that up with a similar shot for four.

IND 7/0 after 1 over: Four! Nabi concedes three singles off the first five balls but Rohit lifts the last one over the in-field on the off side for a boundary. Intent.

7.29 pm: Right, the national anthems are done and we’re ready for play in Abu Dhabi! India have struggled with the bat in the powerplay so far in the tournament, can they turn things around tonight? Here we go!

Playing XIs:

India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ashwin Ravichandran, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.

Afghanistan: Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad (w), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (c), Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Rashid Khan, Karim Janat, Naveen-ul-Haq, Hamid Hassan.

Two changes for India: Suryakumar Yadav returns in place of Ishan Kishan, while Varun Chakravarthy has a niggle and makes way for Ashwin Ravichandran.

A lot of dew in the last game in Abu Dhabi and that has influenced Afghanistan’s decision to bowl first.

Toss:

Mohammad Nabi has won the toss and Afghanistan will bowl first!

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6.30 pm: Hello and welcome to live coverage of the Super 12 Group 2 clash between India and Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi.