Asghar Afghan Equals MS Dhoni's Record Of Most Wins As T20I Captain

With Afghanistan’s victory on Friday over Zimbabwe, captain Asghar Afghan now has equalled former India’s skipper MS Dhoni’s record of most wins in T20Is.

MS Dhoni-led India to 41 victories in T20Is, the record has now been paralleled by Asghar Afghan. However, Afghan achieved this feat in 51 games, while for Dhoni it was 72 matches. Afghanistan’s win percentage in T20Is under Asghar Afghan is 81.37 – better than that of Dhoni, Eoin Morgan, Virat Kohli, and Daren Sammy. The 33-year-old also holds the record of captaining a side in most consecutive T20 internationals, which is 46 matches.

Afghanistan take 2-0 series lead over Zimbabwe with the third rubber on Saturday

With another one-sided victory on Friday over Zimbabwe at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, Asghar Afghan’s team has clinched the series taking a 2-0 unassailable lead with the remaining game to be played on Saturday.

Fifty from Karim Janat, and Mohammad Nabi’s all-round performance – 40 off 15 balls and 2/20 – helped Afghanistan win the second game of the series, having already won the first match on Wednesday courtesy of a thunderous knock of 87 runs from 45 balls from wicket-keeper opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz. Skipper Asghar Afghan also smashed 55 runs off 38 deliveries in the first T20I.

However, superstar leg-spinner Rashid Khan more often than not plays a notable – but now which is expected by his standards – role in Afghanistan’s victory. In the first game, he bowled all his 4 overs on a trot, all in the second half, and picked up three wickets.

In the next T20I, the leg-spinner had an enthralling battle with middle-order batsman Ryan Burl, who smashed Rashid for three sixes in two overs before the bowler was taken off the attack. However, as competitive as ever, Rashid returned in his third over to not dismiss Burl, having the last laugh, but also picked two more wickets in the same over to finish the game.

Including the triumph in this series against Zimbabwe, Afghanistan now has won 10 out of 12 T20I series and is looking strong to make a few upsets in the T20 World Cup later this year.

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