AFG vs SA: Afghanistan’s explosive opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz surpassed Pakistan skipper Babar Azam and equalled India stalwart Virat Kohli’s record for scoring most ODI centuries before turning 23. It was Gurbaz who laid a solid foundation for Afghanistan to seal a historic ODI series win over South Africa. Their first series win against a top-five-ranked team in the ICC standings.
Gurbaz added another dimension to the game and derailed South Africa’s bowling plan in the second ODI in Sharjah. He breezed past South African bowlers effortlessly while relying on his impeccable stroke play to pick up boundaries. He raced to his seventh ODI century for Afghanistan, the most scored by any batter in the nation. He also surpassed Babar, who garnered six centuries before turning 23 in the ODI format.
Gurbaz now stands level with Kohli, who also struck seven hundred in the 50-over format before turning 23.
With the third ODI to be played on Sunday, Gurbaz will have the opportunity to go level with ‘Master Blaster’ Sachin Tendulkar and South Africa’s Quinton de Kock. Both batters racked up a whopping eight centuries in the ODI format before turning 23.
Apart from notching up his seventh ODI century, Gurbaz forged a crucial 88-run opening partnership with Riaz Hassan. Throughout his stay at the crease, Gurbaz scored boundaries according to his will and found the ideal support from his compatriots.
Scoring at a strike rate of 95.45, Gurbaz amassed 105 runs off 110 deliveries, laced with 10 fours and three maximums. His flourishing time on the crease ended after Nandre Burger’s delivery breached past Gurbaz’s tired-looking shot and crashed onto the stumps.
After his departure, Azmatullah Omarzai played an influential cameo of 86*(50) to propel Afghanistan’s score to 311/4.
In reply, South Africa fell short in front of Rashid Khan’s spin magic and succumbed to a 177-run defeat. Rashid, who was dealing with a hamstring injury during his nine-over spell, picked up a five-wicket haul while giving away just 19 runs.
After taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, Afghanistan and South Africa will play the third ODI on Sunday at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.