AFG VS ZIM: Afghanistan thrash Zimbabwe by 232 runs in 2nd One-Day International

HARARE: Afghanistan registered its biggest win in One-Day International cricket when it thrashed Zimbabwe by 232 runs at Harare Sports Club on Thursday.

Chasing 287 in 50 overs, Zimbabwe was bundled out for 54 in 17.5 overs, its joint fourth-lowest total in the format. AM Ghazanfar and Naveed Zadran picked three wickets each to hasten the host’s collapse as Afghanistan took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series after the first ODI was washed out due to rain. Put in to bat, Afghanistan was off to a rollicking start as openers Sediqullah Atal and Abdul Malik put on a 191-run partnership. Though the visitor lost four wickets for 37 runs following that opening stand, Atal and Malik had put their team on course for a fighting total of 286 for six.

Atal’s maiden ODI hundred included eight fours and four sixes, while Malik’s first half-century in the format was laced with 11 fours and a six. Left-arm pacer Newman Nyamhuri was the pick of the bowlers for Zimbabwe, nabbing Afghanistan’s top three and conceding 53 runs in 10 overs.

The 232-run win bettered Afghanistan’s previous biggest win in the format, which was its 177-run victory over South Africa in Sharjah earlier this year in September.

The third and final ODI will be held at the same venue on Saturday. Agencies

Also Read: Cricket: Rashid Khan Returns to Afghanistan's Test Squad for Zimbabwe Series

Also Watch: