Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by eight wickets at the Harare Sports Club to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ODI series. After they bowled out Zimbabwe for 228, Ibrahim Zadran (120 not out) and Rahmat Shah (88) added 195 for the second wicket to seal an win inside 45 overs.
Fazalhaq Farooqi struck with his second ball, curling one into Regis Chakabva to trap him leg before, after Afghanistan opted to bowl. Innocent Kaia (63) then dug deep until he became the fourth Zimbabwean wicket to fall, on 151, in the 32nd over, to Fareed Ahmed (3-56). From there, Zimbabwe should have reached 250, particularly with Sikandar Raza well set. But they lost Milton Shumba early, and Raza followed soon, exposing the tail as early as in the 36th over.
Zimbabwe lost their way against Mohammad Nabi (2-31) and Rashid Khan (2-56), while Farooqi (2-34) returned at the end to keep the runs in check. Ryan Burl stood amidst the ruins, batting until the end, finishing unbeaten on 51 from 61 balls, scored out of the 75 Zimbabwe got during his tenure. Zimbabwe lost their last wicket off the last ball of their innings.
In response, Blessing Muzarabani took out Rahmanullah Gurbaz in his third over, but Zadran and Rahmat ensured there were no further hiccups. After a point, the interest in the match was reduced to whether Rahmat would get to his hundred. That did not happen, for he chased and edged a ball from Donald Tiripano that was well outside the off stump. Afghanistan needed only 17 to win at that point, and Zadran finished things off quickly.
Brief scores
Zimbabwe 228 in 50 overs (Innocent Kaia 63; Fareed Ahmed 3-56) lost to Afghanistan 229/2 in 44.3 overs (Ibrahim Zadran 120*; Donald Tiripano 1-32) by 8 wickets with 33 balls to spare. Player of the Match: Ibrahim Zadran.