Easy win for India over Afghanistan with 38 balls left in first T20 cricket match

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NEW DELHI (AP) — Abhishek Sharma scored 82 off 32 balls, hitting seven sixes and seven fours, as India beat Afghanistan by seven wickets with 38 balls remaining in the first T20 cricket match on Sunday.

Ishan Kishan contributed a 33-ball 42 and put on 121 runs off only 53 deliveries with Sharma for the second wicket as India steamrolled its way to an easy win, finishing at 157-3 in 13.4 overs.

Earlier, Afghanistan was restricted to 156-8 in its 20 overs with left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh taking 3-19 in four overs.

Afghanistan is the designated home team for this three-match series. The official hosts were put into bat, after India's Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to bowl. Afghanistan was down to 43-5 in seven overs.

Azmatullah Omarzai scored 64 not out off 44 balls, while Mohammad Nabi hit 33.

The second and third T20s will be played at the same venue – on Tuesday and Thursday.

Chasing 157 to win, India lost Sanju Samson for 10 – he was caught off Omarzai.

But Sharma set a hectic pace, racing to 50 off 22 balls — his 12th half century for India in T20s. He and Kishan scored 82-1 in the powerplay.

India crossed 100 off 8.2 overs, just as Sharma reached 50. Both Sharma and Kishan fell to off-spinner Mohammad Nabi – in the 11th and 13th overs – but it was too little, too late. Nabi took 2-28 in three overs.

Put into bat, Afghanistan had got off to a poor start – hard-hitting Rahmanullah Gurbaz was out for a two-ball duck to Jasprit Bumrah. The Indian pacer returned from a leg injury sustained during the England tour.

Skipper Ibrahim Zadran was run out for 11. Arshdeep picked up his first wicket when Sediqullah Atal was out for 13.

Omarzai scored an unbeaten half-century – his second in T20s – and put on 83 runs with Nabi to revive the innings. The duo hit six sixes between them but Afghanistan finished with an under-par score as Arshdeep applied the brakes with twin breakthroughs at the death.

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