Having swallowed the series opener, rain threatened to be a buzzkill at Bready again but thankfully the damage was kept down to a delayed toss and three overs shaved off each innings. Inserted on a track which had moisture trapped underneath, leading to progressively slower behaviour, Afghanistan managed an above-par 299/8 despite losing their way from 156/1 as Ibrahim Zadran’s well-composed 84 served as the binding glue. In reply, Ireland struggled to read the variations of Rashid Khan, who produced six wickets to give the tourists early honours in the five-match series.
Newly appointed skipper Rahmat Shah admitted in the presentation ceremony that his team left a few runs out there after a rollicking start. Rahmanullah Gurbaz got Afghanistan off to a flier notwithstanding the fact that he resembled a cat on a hot tin roof. His urgency perhaps had something to do with heaps of productive slam-bang cricket of late. Gurbaz left his crease against the new-ball merchants thrice in the first two overs, failing to make contact even once. While Mark Adair brought his experience to the fore, maintaining control in windy conditions, Jai Moondra was a bundle of nerves on ODI debut. His wayward lines allowed an iffy Gurbaaz a couple of boundaries on the leg side, with the opener’s restlessness also visible in the dicey single he called Ibrahim Zadran through for. He backed off and sliced an overpitched ball from Moondra past point, losing his balance in the process, before tearing into the left-armer who also struggled with his landing as two free hits went the distance.
However, Gurbaz seemed discontent with the momentum Afghanistan already had in their pocket and wanted more. Clearing his front leg, he attempted a heave that could only reach as far as mid-on. An early wicket gave Ireland a sniff but Sediqullah Atal joined forces with Zadran to prevent a slowdown. The left-right combination wore an organized look, playing no shots in anger en route to a classy hundred partnership. Atal reached out and drove an away-swinger from Moondra via covers after Zadran pulled Adair handsomely behind square leg. During this rebuilding phase, edges dropped short of the shrinking cordon and some run-out opportunities could have been interesting in case of direct hits. 13 runs off an over by Moondra, courtesy of Atal’s fine glance and swanky hook, took his figures to 48/1 after five overs, less than ideal in terms of the support Adair needed, even considering the wicket of Gurbaz.
Byron McDonough was greeted into the attack with an emphatic pull shot by Zadran, whose affinity for clipping off his pads ushered the stand to fifty. A two-card trick off the tall, rookie leg-spinner Gavin Hoey bore testimony to his cricketing acumen. He rocked onto the backfoot to convert a marginally short ball into a scoring avenue, proceeding to pre-empt the fuller course-correction to launch a six over long-on. A stylish way to bring up the team ton, the double whammy was followed by an exquisite backfoot punch from Zadran off Byron. Hoey the leggie was bound to bowl a freebie here and there, for control is not a wristspinner’s forte, so a full toss pushed Zadran to the verge of fifty. Atal was hot on his heels, playing an attacking shot against Curtis Campher to transcend the infield. Mid-off was up inside the circle, therefore he knew the medium pacer was going to bang the ball into the surface and the shimmying loft with a horizontal blade was very much on.
Harry Tector, possessing a wealth of experience in white-ball cricket, received a belated introduction and his value came to the fore almost immediately. Atal was done in by the inward drift, and Gavin backed up the dismissal with some quiet overs of his own. The ring fielders closed in on Rahmat Shah, Afghanistan’s leading run-getter in the format, striving to keep a tight lid on the scoring rate as Adair returned for his second spell. While Rahmat got going in the fifth over bowled by trundler Curtis Campher, thanks to a slash and a chip down the ground, Zadran was approaching three figures at the other end. He miscued a tonk over mid-off and fetched four, albeit Campher had his hands on his hips as the fielding effort was not the greatest. Zadran fancied an encore but there wasn’t enough elevation on the stroke this time around as Ireland clawed back into the contest, engineering a ten-over phase post the halfway mark where they nabbed two wickets for the cost of just 49 runs.
Hoey was granted a full allocation of overs in a rain-affected clash, alongside Moondra. The leggie’s summoning proved to be an inspired change by Paul Stirling as Rahmat departed with the innings headed into the home stretch. Andrew Balbirnie was safe as houses in the deep, pouching the adventurous slog sweep. Fresh off a half-century against India, Azmatullah Omarzai supplied the shot of the day. Obtaining the width he was looking for, the all-rounder stayed still and freed his arms to bag half-a-dozen. Though just when it appeared as if he could provide the final flourish Afghanistan were seeking, Moondra’s tramline yorker snuffed him out. Hashmatullah Shahidi executed an impressive slash, using the pace of the bowler, but Ireland were able to close out the proceedings without a whole lot of fuss.
With the ball beginning to grip, the hosts had their task cut out with the bat. An enormous pursuit mandated their seniors come good, which didn’t quite happen. The two-paced nature of the pitch, at this stage, forced Stirling into a tame jab to mid-wicket. Tector played for the wrong ‘un only for Rashid to whip out the leg-spinner that grazed his edge. Balbirnie was in the midst of a scratchy knock, devoid of feet movement, yet Ireland pinned their hopes on the bulwark since he’d crossed thirties by flicking Saleem Safi. The technical shortcoming eventually spelt his doom as the lack of footwork had him nicking an attempted cut off the on-song Rashid; his upper body flailing away instead of moving towards the turning ball. At 106/3, Ireland were skating on thin ice before discovering a messiah in Cade Carmichael. Living dangerously, the right-hander escaped tempting chances at mid-wicket, narrow run-out opportunities, and an eerily close lbw shout to punch in a fifty. Afghanistan grew a little anxious given Azmatullah Omarzai had injured his finger in a bid to capture one of those close shaves.
Carmichael accessed the short boundary by helping along a rapid bouncer from Safi after dispatching Fazalhaq Farooqi for consecutive boundaries, showcasing his strength off either foot. With Afghanistan affording rest to the economical AM Ghazanfar to unleash pace in the middle overs, an episode of schoolboy cricket cost Lorcan Tucker his short-lived presence at the crease. Rapped on the pads, he lost sight of the ball and jetted off for a non-existent single. Atal was alert to the situation at backward point, nailing the direct hit to dig a deeper hole for Ireland. Ultimately, Carmichael also ran out of luck, ramping a short and wide freebie from the resurgent Omarzai straight to third man. Their back broken, Ireland fell 92 shy of the target, with the entertaining cameo of Benjamin Calitz, who smashed a hat-trick of fours facing Safi, merely delaying the inevitable. Afghanistan have now won their last seven ODIs against Ireland, with the antithesis materializing in May 2019.
