Zimbabwe vs Afghanistan, 3rd ODI at Sharjah, , Jan 02 2016 - Ball by Ball Commentary

8.45pm That's it from all of us here. A very enjoyable game of cricket to bring to you all, and we hope you enjoyed our coverage. I'll leave you with a few comments from our readers. Until next time, good night!

Praneeth: "Hope this win act as the catalyst for Zimbabwe to take the U-turn after a terrible 2015."

Abdul Samad War: "It is not Afghan tigers' mistake it is magic cat power."

Josh: "1st and 3rd games have been rather odd. The team batting first seems to have lost it by the innings break and then then the team batting 2nd makes them look superb. Guess you can never judge a pitch until both sides bat."

8.35pm Time for some quotes from the presentation. First up, Hamilton Masakadza, the man of the match: "Got in at a very difficult time, credit to Cremer for the support he gave me, and the bowlers did very well as well. Cremer has always been a good batsman. I've been on the wrong end of a 170 from him in a first-class game. We managed to bat as long as we wanted to and managed to get a few hits away towards the end. It's good that we've managed to keep the series alive, hope we can keep this momentum."

Asghar Stanikzai: "Our bowlers started very well. Good partnership between Masakadza and Cremer, but a total of 175 was [chaseable]. The wicket is not too difficult but our batsmen played poor shots and their bowlers bowled very well. We have more opportunity in the next game, inshallah we play good cricket."

Elton Chigumbura: "It's a good start to the year. All credit goes to Hamilton, Graeme Cremer, and the two bowlers who gave us a good start. Getting those two wickets in the first over set the tone for us. It's good to see that we've got strike bowlers. I hope Jongwe carries on with the form he showed today. It's important for us in the next game to come out firing again. The way we started with the bat was disappointing. It was important that we bounced back. The way Cremer supported Hamilton was fantastic. To end up on 175 gave us a chance to come and defend the score. It's been a long time since we won a game. It's a good start to the year and I hope we carry on."

10.20pm What a turnaround, and what a win for Zimbabwe. They were 49 for 7 when Masakadza and Cremer came together, and their partnership dragged them to 175. It still looked an inadequate total, but Zimbabwe defended it with some exceptional bowling, even if Afghanistan's technique and shot selection left a lot to be desired. The series has heated up brilliantly now: Afghanistan lead 2-1, and two more matches remain.

Here's Graeme Cremer.

Praneeth : "Oh my goodness! The last time I checked the score, Zimbabwe were at 55/7. Didn't check back thinking the game is over for them. But now, it's all over for Afghans at 50/9. Can someone tell me what the hell happened in between?" -- Take a long, close look at the scorecard, my friend. And also Vishal Dikshit's innings report, which will soon be updated to include the rest of the match.

The shortest all-out innings in ODIs was Namibia's 14 overs against Australia during the 2003 World Cup. Two more balls for Afghanistan to avoid setting a new record.