Let us take a look at the key highlights of Matches 1 and 2 of the 2021 Germany T20 tri-series that took place on 5 August.
Match 1, Germany v Norway
Norway 76 in 18.4 overs (Sher Sahak 30; Ghulam Ahmadi 4-5) lost to Germany 80/5 in 17.1 overs (Talha Khan 16; Raza Iqbal 2-14) by 5 wickets with 17 balls to spare. Player of the Match: Ghulam Ahmadi.
Ghulam Ahmadi returned outstanding figures of 4-2-5-4 to help Germany beat Norway in the opening match of the tri-series in Krefeld. Ahmadi and Sajid Liaqat (3-24) ran through Norway to bowl them out for 76 in 18.4 overs after Venkatraman Ganesan won the toss and asked them to bat. Sher Sahak and Darshana Abeyrathna made 30 each, but rest of their teammates did not even score in excess of five.
Coming to a paltry chase, Germany lost wickets in regular intervals, to Vinay Ravi (2-16) and Raza Iqbal (2-14), but kept the scoreboard ticking. Ganesan (15*) and Sahir Naqash (10*) helped Germany reach the target with 17 balls to spare, with five wickets in hand.
Match 2, Norway v France
Norway 112/7 in 20 overs (Waqas Ahmed 32*; Dawood Ahmadzai 2-10) lost to France 113/6 in 19.3 overs (Suventhiran Santhirakumaran 34; Raza Iqbal 2-13) by 4 wickets with 3 balls to spare. Player of the Match: Suventhiran Santhirakumaran.
Norway put on an improved show in their second match of the day, but still ended up on the losing side against France, at the same venue. Batting first, Norway made 112/7, Waqas Ahmed top-scoring with 32 not out off 36 balls. Rahmatullah Mangal (2-12) and Dawood Ahmadzai (2-10) were economical in their spells.
In reply, Usman Shahid (28) and Suventhiran Santhirakumaran (34) added 67 for the opening wicket to lay the platform for France. Noman Amjad then played a quickfire 20-ball 24 to take France past the finishing line with three balls to spare.