Azmatullah Omarzai struck 116 off 50 balls after walking in at 5/4, setting a T20I record and leading Afghanistan to victory over Zimbabwe in the second T20I in Sharjah on Thursday.
According to The Times of India, the innings is the highest individual score by a batter coming in at No. 6 or lower in T20Is involving Full Member nations. It lifted Afghanistan to 221/7 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium after a collapse that had threatened to decide the match inside the first few overs.
The win marked Afghanistan's eighth consecutive T20I series victory against Zimbabwe, the newspaper reported. Zimbabwe have never won a T20I series against Afghanistan.
Highest score by a No 6 batter in T20I: who Omarzai passed
Omarzai's 116 included five fours and 12 sixes at a strike rate of 232, The Times of India said. It took the record from former Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi, who scored 89 against Ireland in 2017.
The knock also moved Omarzai ahead of several other high scores in the category, according to the report:
- Mohammad Nabi: 89 against Ireland, 2017
- Sam Billings: 87 against West Indies, 2019
- Cameron White: 85 not out against Sri Lanka, 2010
- David Miller: 85 not out against Pakistan, 2021
How Afghanistan recovered from 5/4
Zimbabwe's bowlers reduced Afghanistan to 5/4, with several top-order batters out cheaply, The Times of India reported. Sediqullah Atal held on for 17 off 21 deliveries before he was dismissed in the ninth over.
Omarzai then found a partner in Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai. The pair added 142 runs off 59 balls for the sixth wicket, according to the newspaper. That is a rate of well over two runs a ball at a stage when Afghanistan had been trying to avoid being bowled out cheaply.
Ijaz made 52 off 27 deliveries, with five fours and three sixes. The partnership ended when he fell with the score on 180.
Omarzai kept attacking until he was dismissed in the 19th over. The Times of India described the innings as one of the finest rescue acts in Afghanistan's T20I history.
Captain Rashid Khan then hit an unbeaten 25 off six balls, including four sixes. Mujeeb Ur Rahman was not out on two as Afghanistan finished on 221/7, a run rate of 11.05 per over, the newspaper reported.
Rashid Khan 200 wickets: a first in T20Is
Rashid also reached a bowling milestone in the match. He became the first bowler to take 200 wickets in T20Is, according to The Times of India.
The report did not give his bowling figures for the match or say which batter was his 200th wicket.
Sikandar Raza's century not enough for Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza scored his second T20I century in the chase, The Times of India reported. He batted until the end, but the visitors fell short of the target.
Tafadzwa Tsiga gave Raza useful support on his debut, according to the newspaper. The dismissal of Ryan Burl was another setback for Zimbabwe.
The report did not give Zimbabwe's final total, Raza's exact score or the margin of Afghanistan's victory.
Zimbabwe's bowlers had reduced Afghanistan to four wickets down with five runs on the board. They then watched the sixth-wicket stand and Rashid's late hitting take the total to 221/7.
The defeat continues Zimbabwe's poor T20I record against Afghanistan. Afghanistan have now won eight T20I series in a row against them, and Zimbabwe are still waiting for their first series win in the format against this opponent, The Times of India reported.