Yes he can! he bends down on his knee and whacks the slower delivery over deep square leg with a powerful sweep shot! Half-century for Shafiq off only 24 deliveries and a much-needed win for Afghanistan
Hong Kong vs Afghanistan, 5th Match, First Round Group A at Chattogram, Mar 18 2014 - Ball by Ball Commentary
153/8
(18/20 ov, T:154) 154/3
Afghanistan won by 7 wickets (with 12 balls remaining)
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AFG
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end of over 1811 runs
AFG: 154/3CRR: 8.55
Shafiqullah51 (24b 5x4 3x6)
Mohammad Nabi6 (5b)
Haseeb Amjad 4-0-35-1
Aizaz Khan 3-0-39-1
So Afghanistan get to live for another day. Thanks for being with us, the next match is about to start. So see you over there. Ciao ciao
Mohammad Shahzad is the Man of the Match. He says, "I didn't play well in the last two matches so the coach told me to take my time. Everybody supported me in the match. It was a good fifty for me and it was a good win for us. In t20, everything is possible. We need to see the result of the next match and hopefully we can make it to the next round"
Wonderful innings by Shafiqullah towards the end. It looked like the game was set to be a thriller once Shahzad was brilliantly caught at the boundary, but Shafiqullah was unstoppable - his 24 runs in the 17th over making it an easy jog for Afghanistan. Hong Kong are out of the tournament
17.6
4
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, FOUR runs
Can he get to his fifty now?
17.5
1
Haseeb Amjad to M Nabi, 1 run
fuller delivery on off, Nabi drives it to long off for a single
17.4
•
Haseeb Amjad to M Nabi, no run
length delivery, pushed straight to midwicket
17.3
1
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, 1 run
low full toss on off, the batsman punches it to long on for a single
17.2
4
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, FOUR runs
no stopping Shafiqullah! It's a very good yorker, but the batsman is down on his knee and paddles this one fine down the leg side for another boundary. What poise! What hitting!
Rahul: "Afgans are keeping it cool here. Its a good comeback by the boys after the haywire batting against Bangladesh."
17.1
1
Haseeb Amjad to M Nabi, 1 run
starts off with a good yorker, the batsman flicks it to midwicket for a single
end of over 1724 runs
AFG: 143/3CRR: 8.41 • RRR: 3.66
Shafiqullah42 (21b 3x4 3x6)
Mohammad Nabi4 (2b)
Aizaz Khan 3-0-39-1
Haseeb Amjad 3-0-24-1
16.6
6
Aizaz Khan to Shafiq, SIX runs
my god what a striker! This is length delivery on off and Shafiqullah sends this over deep square leg with a powerful swipe. Third six of the over. Hong Kong have been sixed out of this match now
16.5
3
Aizaz Khan to M Nabi, 3 runs
full delivery on the pads, the batsman tickles it down to the gap at deep square leg. But this third one could be the end of Shafiqullah as a good throw comes in quickly ..He dives to get back, but he could be in trouble..He has managed to slide the bat in.
16.4
1
Aizaz Khan to Shafiq, 1 run
now he smartly dabs it to off side for a quick single
16.3
6
Aizaz Khan to Shafiq, SIX runs
another monster strike! He looks like he not in control as he drags this length delivery from outside off, but it keeps going away.. over deep midwicket. That's flat and that's long. How good was that!
16.2
2
Aizaz Khan to Shafiq, 2 runs
he looks to pull this one to the leg side, but gets a top edge that beats the short fine leg fielder
16.1
6
Aizaz Khan to Shafiq, SIX runs
ho ho! Low full toss outside off, this is muscled with a lot of power over wide long on.. It disappears in the night sky. Powerful strike
35 off 24.. Should be easy with the seven wickets they have in hand
end of over 169 runs • 1 wicket
AFG: 119/3CRR: 7.43 • RRR: 8.75
Shafiqullah21 (16b 3x4)
Mohammad Nabi1 (1b)
Haseeb Amjad 3-0-24-1
Irfan Ahmed 3-0-15-0
15.6
1
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, 1 run
low full toss outside off, the bastman punches it to long on for a single
15.5
1
Haseeb Amjad to M Nabi, 1 run
fuller delivery outside off, driven down to long off with ease
15.4
1
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, 1 run
length delivery, punched to deep midwicket for a single
15.3
W
Haseeb Amjad to Shahzad, OUT
oh what a stunner! Magnifico! After all those drops, you don't expect these, but Irfan Ahmed takes a screamer to send Shahzad back. It was a slower delivery that the batsman punched over extra cover with wonderful timing - it looked set to make it to the boundary, but Irfan Ahmed dives forward to pluck it just above the grass. Call it my poor judgment but i was expecting that to be dropped as well
Mohammad Shahzad c Irfan Ahmed b Haseeb Amjad 68 (53b 6x4 3x6 69m) SR: 128.3
15.2
1
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, 1 run
full delivery on the stumps, the batsman clips it to deep midwicket for a single
Rohit: "The bowler too is aware that the batsman wants to maximize the risk-free opportunity and thus the bowler tries to ensure that he doesn't bowl a hit-me-for-six-since-you-have-no-risk delivery off a free hit. In the initial days, batsmen used to miss out because they tried to hit a six off it, but now, batsmen have become smarter and realize that 4 is better than a none. They can't play like that sans a free hit because the risk of getting out far outweighs the reward and also...the bowler isn't just trying to avoid a six of a normal delivery, he is trying to avoid getting hit for any runs whatsoever. "
15.2
1w
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, 1 wide
oh dear, another one down the leg side! An easy call for the umpire
15.1
4
Haseeb Amjad to Shafiq, FOUR runs
poor delivery! A full toss on the pads. The batsman nonchalantly flicks it to deep backward square leg boundary. Hong Kong are coming apart
end of over 158 runs
AFG: 110/2CRR: 7.33 • RRR: 8.80
Mohammad Shahzad68 (52b 6x4 3x6)
Shafiqullah14 (12b 2x4)
Irfan Ahmed 3-0-15-0
Nadeem Ahmed 3-0-22-0
Sai: "@MAB - All that is wired to something called SKILL."
14.6
4
Irfan Ahmed to Shahzad, FOUR runs
this is murderous now! He moves to the leg side, the bowler chases him with a back of length delivery, Shahzad then plays a cross-court forehand to power this to the deep midwicket boundary.
MAB: "@Kamran - there is one more character in Cricket called "Bowler", why your "Mindset" opinion only for batsmen? Why can't bowler hit the stumps on every bowl? :D"
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