Shahzad thumps Afghanistan to four-wicket win
ESPNcricinfo staff
29-Dec-2015
Zimbabwe were given a great start after opting to bat, as Peter Moor struck a well-compiled fifty. The openers added 71 before Rokhan Barakzai got Richmond Mutumbami out • Chris Whiteoak
Craig Ervine got quickly into action, employing deft sweeps and reverse sweeps to earn his runs•Chris Whiteoak
The returning Hamilton Masakadza added 98 for the third wicket with Ervine, thereby setting a strong platform for a competitive total•Chris Whiteoak
The bowlers, however, kept chipping away at the wickets towards the end•Chris Whiteoak
Ervine holed out to long-off for 73, helping Zimbabwe post a total of 253 after 81 runs were plundered off the last 10 overs•Chris Whiteoak
Afghanistan's openers added 82 solid runs before Sikandar Raza broke through•Chris Whiteoak
Mohammad Shahzad found runs with some muscular strokes, including a six to bring up his fifty•Chris Whiteoak
However, just as it appeared like Afghanistan would cruise to the target, they slipped from 169 for 1 to 186 for 5•Chris Whiteoak
Shahzad, who was stuck in the 90s for almost eight overs, finally got to his fourth ODI century•Chris Whiteoak
Elton Chigumbura's multiple strikes continued to infuse belief into Zimbabwe, who fought valiantly but it was a task too far•Chris Whiteoak
Shahzad finished on 131* - the highest score by an Afghanistan batsman in ODIs - as the target of 254 was achieved with four wickets and 14 balls to spare•Chris Whiteoak