IND vs AFG: Dube, Axar assist India beat Afghanistan by six wickets, take 1-0 sequence lead

A visibly dissatisfied Rohit Sharma gesticulated at Shubman Gill as he walked in the direction of the dressing room after being run out.

Chasing a difficult 159 towards Afghanistan in biting chilly situations on the IS Bindra-Punjab Cricket Association Stadium on Thursday, an entire misunderstanding between Gill and Rohit noticed the Indian captain dropping his wicket.

As the Afghans celebrated the early breakthrough, anxious moments ensued for the Indian camp. However, because the night progressed, Shivam Dube took management of the sport, introduced up his second T20I fifty (60 not out, 40b, 5×4, 2×6) and finally guided India to a six-wicket win within the first T20I.

While Rinku Singh got here up with an unbeaten 9-ball 16-run cameo in the direction of the top, it was the 45-run partnership for the fourth wicket between Dube and Jitesh Sharma (31, 20b, 5×4) that paved the best way for India’s victory.

As the temperature dipped to eight levels, Dube – that includes in a T20I after three months – stored his cool and constructed three essential partnerships – together with a 44 run-stand with Tilak Varma – to information the staff out of the woods.

Coming in at a time when India misplaced openers Rohit and Gill early, Dube took his time to settle in, earlier than hitting a couple of huge pictures off pacers Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naveen-ul-Haq. What stood out in his innings was that he allowed his companions Tilak and Jitesh, who was most well-liked over Sanju Samson, to play their pictures, whereas he performed the position of a sheet anchor.

Against a formidable Afghanistan bowling line-up, his method labored as he may deal with the conditions effectively and gave the impression to be in no temper to hurry en path to his fifty.

Inserted in its first-ever white-ball bilateral fixture towards India, Afghanistan openers Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmanullah Gurbaz cast a 50-run partnership, but it surely got here at a sluggish tempo, which affected the staff’s momentum.

With 100-odd Afghanistan followers cheering for the touring aspect, a fiery knock was the necessity of the hour, however not one of the batters may provide you with a harmful innings. With each Zadran and Gurbaz perishing in a span of three deliveries, Afghanistan was precariously positioned at 57 for 3 on the finish of the tenth over.

Things would have gone haywire had Mohammad Nabi not joined Azmatullah Omarzai to offer some impetus to the innings, with a 68-run stand.

The duo went after leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, who conceded 35 runs in three overs at an financial system price of 11.66.

However, simply when Afghanistan dreamed of a giant whole, the partnership was damaged within the 18th over by Mukesh Kumar, who dismissed each the set batters in a span of 5 deliveries.

Though Najibullah Zadran and Karim Janat hammered 5 boundaries within the final two overs to take the Afghans’ nearer to the 160-run mark, Dube stood agency on batting floor and ensured there was no upset. 

With dew enjoying an element, India hunted down the tough goal and paid a becoming tribute to its head coach Rahul Dravid, who turned 51 on Thursday. With a 1-0 lead, the staff now travels to Indore with hopes of pocketing the sequence.