India climbed to a 1-0 lead in their three-match T20I series after a comprehensive all-round victory over Afghanistan on Thursday night. While the chase of 159 saw India lose wickets at regular intervals, Shivam Dube’s composure shone through; his unbeaten 60 from 40 balls eliminated any late-game tension. Rinku Singh provided a steady hand with 16 not out. The two teams will now head to Holkar Stadium for the second encounter on Sunday, January 14.
Men in Blue produced an all-round performance to beat Afghanistan by 6 wickets in the first T20I on Thursday night. With a comfortable win, India has taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. Although the hosts lost regular wickets while chasing 159, Shivam Dube’s brilliant knock of unbeaten 60 runs from 40 balls helped India to reach the target without any late hiccup. Dube received fine support from Rinku Singh with an unbeaten 16. Both teams will now move to the Holkar Stadium for game 2, which will be played on January 14, Sunday.
After being asked to bat first, Afghanistan looked promising early on as Gurbaz and Zadran shared a 50-run opening partnership. The momentum shifted when Jitesh Sharma caught Gurbaz (23) behind the stumps, and Shivam Dube immediately struck back by dismissing Zadran for 25. The collapse continued briefly as Axar Patel cleaned up Rahmat Shah for a meager 3 runs.
The Afghan innings found stability through a significant 68-run stand between Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi. India finally broke the partnership in the 18th over when Mukesh Kumar bowled Omarzai for 29. A strong contributing effort from Nabi (42) and a late push by Najibullah Zadran (19*) helped Afghanistan reach a respectable total of 158/5.
India's pursuit of the target started poorly when a brilliant effort from Ibrahim resulted in Rohit Sharma being run out for zero. Shubman Gill looked classily in control for a while, scoring 23, but he couldn't convert it into a massive score. Tilak Varma and Jitesh Sharma added useful contributions of 26 and 31, respectively. Despite the Afghan bowlers keeping the pressure high and taking regular wickets, the partnership between Dube and Rinku proved decisive in sealing the win.