By Caroline Chepkorir

In the first ODI series, Afghanistan won by 92 runs over Bangladesh. The Bangladesh batters struggled to stabilize their innings at Sharjah Cricket Stadium in the UAE. Bangladesh have also suffered another major setback as veteran wicketkeeper batter Mushfiqur Rahim has been ruled out of the ongoing three-match ODI series.

The wicketkeeper sustained a finger injury in the first ODI. In the 49th over of the first innings, he was maintaining wicket when the incident happened. He was caught by spinner Allah Ghazanfar, who hammered 6-26 when he came to bat at number seven and scored a run off three deliveries.

In the match, Afghanistan won the toss and opted to bat first, and they struggled as their top batters were dismissed in quick succession. The batters were Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmat Shah, Sediqullah Atal, and Azmatullah Omarzai.

The partnership between Captain Hashmatullah Shahidi and Gulbadin Naib laid a strong foundation for Afghanistan, and they got key support from all-rounder Mohammad Nabi; he smashed a brilliant 84 runs off 79 balls, and Afghanistan set a target of 235 runs in 49.4 overs.

The Bangladesh openers got off to a strong start as captain Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mehidy Hasan Miraz partnered to add 52 runs as they chased a competitive target of 236. At the 20th over, Bangladesh’s scoreboard was at 102/2. Mohammed Nabi ended the partnership.

Bangladesh needed 105 runs from 20 overs, and they had seven wickets. The 18-year-old Allah Ghazanfar dismissed Mehidy Hasan Miraz for 28 runs off 51 balls, and Ghazanfar caught Mushfiqur Rahim. Allah Ghazanfar continued to assault Bangladesh batters, and he got Rishad Hossain LBW and Taskin Ahmed, and he registered three wickets in a single over.

Bangladesh lost all their last seven wickets for only 11 runs, and they were bowled out for just 143. Allah Ghazanfar was named the player of the match for his outstanding performance.

The remaining two ODIs against Afghanistan are scheduled for November 9 and 11 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium. After the series, Bangladesh will tour the West Indies later this month for a full series, which will include two Tests and three ODIs.

“We started well in the first 15-20 overs. But we didn’t execute our plans in the middle overs. Nabi batted brilliantly. We didn’t need to attack more. The wicket had enough help for the bowlers. I think Shahidi and Nabi batted really well. My wicket made the difference. I was the set batter and needed to bat longer. Afghanistan always has mystery spinners, and Allah Ghazanfar bowled really well. The preparation was brilliant, but today was not our day, and hopefully we can turn it around,” said Bangladesh captain Najmul Shanto in the post-match presentation.