Afghanistan outplayed Scotland with both bat and ball to win their first ICC T20 World Cup game from group B by 130 runs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman wreaked havoc with the ball after Afghanistan’s top-order contributed with the bat. Hazratullah Zazai (44), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (46) and Najibullah Zadran (59) contributed handsomely to take the Afghans to 190/4 in their 20 overs.
As many as 11 sixes were hit in the innings with Najib hitting two sixes over 100 meters. The biggest six of the game was hit by him which went for 103 meters. Then came Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s turn with the ball to bamboozle the opposition batsmen.
He took five for 20 from his four overs as the Scotts were bowled out for just 60. Rashid Khan, his partner from the other end, took 4/9 in less than three overs. Together the mystery spinners took nine wickets for just 29 runs.
This Afghanistan win is the biggest among teams who have defended totals successfully so far in the T20 World Cup. In the process, they have made a huge statement to the other teams. They have already beaten West Indies in the practice games and can create a few more upsets throughout the campaign.
Meanwhile, Twitter was buzzing with congratulatory messages to Mujeeb Ur Rahman who created an impact in his very first T20 World Cup match.
Here are some tweets on Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s performance
8 overs of mujeeb and rash ? Good luck
— Jofra Archer (@JofraArcher) October 25, 2021
One of the best #T20WorldCup performances of all time, and he did it on tournament debut!
Take a bow, Mujeeb Ur Rahman! 🙇♂️ pic.twitter.com/UuRJ5KTHrg
— T20 World Cup (@T20WorldCup) October 26, 2021
Mujeeb Ur Rahman is a cricket journalist's delight tonight.#AFGvsSCO
— Rahul Pandey (@sportstoryguy) October 25, 2021
Mujeeb Ur Rahman becomes the first player to take a five-wicket haul in a World Cup (ODI/T20I) match for Afghanistan.#AFGvSCO
— Kausthub Gudipati (@kaustats) October 25, 2021
🔹 George Munsey’s reverse hit for a six
🔹 Mohammad Shahzad’s diving grab
🔹 Mujeeb Ur Rahman – the first five-for of the tournamentVote for your @Nissan #POTD for Day 9 🗳️https://t.co/a1rjp1pAxn pic.twitter.com/Pq0YjMGtmN
— ICC (@ICC) October 25, 2021
3 wickets in the over for Mujeeb Ur Rahman, what an over. Absolutely unplayable for Scotland batters.
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) October 25, 2021
Stunning from Mujeeb ur Rahman. Always stump to stump, maximising his variations in spin direction, today was a classic of the genre. All five wickets were bowled or LBW, with three balls turning left-to-right, one from right-to-left, and one straight on. T20WorldCup #AFGvSCO pic.twitter.com/d6eM3DQgvS
— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) October 25, 2021
Mujeeb also won the Man of the Match for his figures in the game. “Very happy that we won our first match. This is my first World Cup game and I won the Man of the Match. The fans bring in a lot of energy and that’s why we played positive cricket tonight” he said after the game.
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