Afghanistan A stun India A in One-Day tri-series

DAMBULLA: Abdollah Ahmadzai's five-wicket haul, followed by half-centuries from captain Imran Mir and Bahir Shah, helped Afghanistan A stun India A by eight wickets in the rain-hit fixture of the Sri Lanka-hosted One-Day tri-series here at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium on Thursday.

In a match that was initially reduced to 49 overs per side, Afghanistan A captain Imran won the toss and opted to field first.

Put into bat first, India A piled up a mammoth total of 349/9 in their allotted overs, courtesy of half-centuries from Prabhsimran Singh, Ruturaj Gaikwad and captain Tilak Varma.

The right-handed opener remained the top-scorer for India A with a brisk 84 off 69 deliveries, laced with 14 boundaries, followed by Gaikwad and Varma, who made 66 each.

Besides them, left-handed opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and batting all-rounder Suryansh Shedge made notable contributions, scoring quickfire 44 and 40, respectively.

Ahmadzai spearheaded Afghanistan A's bowling charge with a five-wicket haul, but was expensive as he conceded 68 runs in his nine overs. He was supported by Farmanullah, who bagged three wickets, while Imran made one scalp.

Set to chase a daunting 350-run target, Afghanistan A made a flamboyant start to the pursuit and were well-placed at 177/2 in 25.5 overs when rain halted the action, and the side were found four runs ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis Stern (DLS) par score.

Skipper Imran spearheaded Afghanistan A's calculated pursuit as he top-scored with an unbeaten 75 off 70 deliveries, studded with six fours and two sixes, followed by middle-order batter Bahir Shah, who made 51 not out from 52 balls with the help of five fours.

For India A, Anukul Roy and Arshad Khan could claim one wicket apiece.

The narrow four-run victory helped Afghanistan A pip India A to claim the top spot in the One-Day tri-series standings due to a superior net run rate, as both teams have two points each, with the latter having played a match more.

Hosts Sri Lanka A, on the other hand, remained at the bottom as they lost their campaign opener against India A by eight runs.