Afghanistan v Ireland: Afghans clinch Twenty20 series with 57-run victory
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Ibrahim Zadran's unbeaten 72 helped Afghanistan post 155-7 and Ireland never looked like approaching that total
Third Twenty20 international, Sharjah |
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Afghanistan 155-7 (20 overs): Ibrahim 72*, Ishaq 27; Little 1-27 |
Ireland 98 (17.2 overs): Campher 28; Azmatullah 4-9, Naveen 3-10 |
Afghanistan won by 57 runs |
Afghanistan clinched the T20 series against Ireland with a dominant 57-run win in game three in Sharjah.
Ibrahim Zadran's unbeaten 72 helped Afghanistan post 155-7 and the Irish never looked like getting close as they slumped to 15-3 after 2.4 overs.
Ireland were eventually dismissed for 98 in 17.2 overs.
Curtis Campher was Ireland's top scorer with a paltry 28 as Afghanistan seamer Azmatullah Omarzai produced career best T20 figures of 4-9 from his four overs.
Ireland captain Paul Stirling said afterwards that his team had been "slightly off the pace tonight".
"We were beaten by the better side. It's a slightly disappointing way to end the series but I'm really proud of some of the performances that we put in," added the Irish skipper.
Naveen takes two wickets in two balls
Naveen-ul-Haq bowled Andrew Balbirnie and Lorcan Tucker in successive deliveries in the second over with fellow seamer Fazalhaq Farooqi soon dismissing Stirling.
The loss of the three early wickets left Ireland already well down on the run rate and Azmatullah then dismissed both Harry Tector and George Dockrell with Naveen taking both catches just short of the boundary to leave the Irish on 46-5 after 9.5 overs.
As was the case on Sunday, Gareth Delany produced some big hitting, including two sixes, to give the Irish a brief glimmer of getting back into the contest.
However, Rashid Khan returned to the Afghanistan attack to tie down Delany before Campher, Mark Adair and Barry McCarthy departed to put the Irish on the brink of defeat at 93-8 after 15.5 overs.
Azmatullah took the wickets of Mark Adair and McCarthy, the latter with a fine catch off his own bowling, to complete his career best T20 figures.
Gareth Delany tried to get Ireland back in the game with some big hitting but was eventually dismissed by Rashid Khan
Franchise star Rashid took his sole wicket as Delany departed for 21, with batting hero Zadran taking the catch, before seamer Naveen's third dismissal completed victory as he bowled Ben White.
Earlier, Adair dismissed Rahmanullah Gurbaz to put Afghanistan on 14-1 and while Sediqullah Atal and Azmatullah departed in the space of three runs to leave them on 48-3, Zadran's 54-run partnership with Mohammad Ishaq put the Afghans in a strong position.
Zadran's unbeaten knock included three sixes and five fours.
The T20 series decider rounded off three weeks of action between the countries, Ireland having won the one-off Test in Abu Dhabi before the Afghans clinched a 2-0 victory in a one-day series where one of the games was abandoned because of rain.
Ireland took a 1-0 advantage in the T20 series by earning a 38-run on Friday but Mohammad Nabi's 59 helped Afghanistan draw level on Sunday as they recovered from being 14-4 in their innings to clinch a 10-run triumph, with Rashid taking four wickets.
Irish skipper Stirling said the team's first ever men's Test win would remain a "special" moment in the country's cricket history.
"The tour as a whole has been brilliant. We love coming here to the UAE and playing against Afghanistan. They always seem to be great series and we look forward to the next one."