The UAE on Monday gave a 161-run target to Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup 2026 Group D match being played at at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
With a Super Eight place in mind, Afghanistan, after winning the toss and opting to field first, made the ideal start striking twice early to leave UAE 13 for the loss of two wickets.
A third-wicket stand of 84 steadied the innings, featuring a 40 from Alishan Sharafu and a 48-ball 68 from Sohaib Khan, an innings that included six fours and four sixes.
Once the partnership was broken, UAE struggled to accelerate. From 97-3, they slid to 160-9 in 20 overs, undone by timely wickets as Afghanistan tightened the squeeze through the middle and at the death.
The two sides arrived on the back of contrasting results. UAE edged past Canada to register their first win, while Afghanistan were left devastated after taking South Africa to two Super Overs in a thriller but still falling short.
With South Africa and New Zealand occupying the top two spots in the group on six and four points respectively, UAE’s qualification hopes depend on winning and then needing results elsewhere to go their way.
Afghanistan, meanwhile, are desperate to get off the mark and know they must win their remaining matches convincingly, while also relying on other outcomes, to stay in the hunt.
Playing XI
Afghanistan: Rashid Khan (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Ziaur Rahman Sharifi
UAE: Muhammad Waseem (c), Aryansh Sharma (wk), Alishan Sharafu, Sohaib Khan, Syed Haider, Harshit Kaushik, Muhammad Arfan, Haider Ali, Simranjeet Singh, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Jawadullah
