Afghans stun BD, equal Aussies feat

CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh: Rashid Khan claimed 6-49 as Afghanistan thrashed Bangladesh by 224 runs in Chittagong Monday, equalling Australia’s longstanding record as the quickest nation to chalk up two victories in Test cricket.The Afghans defied rain and fading light to take the one-off Test, a historic win for the war-torn country that only earned full member status of the International Cricket Council in 2017.Rashid grabbed three of the remaining four wickets as Afghanistan took 17.2 overs on the fifth day to bowl out Bangladesh for 173 in the second innings after the hosts resumed with 136-6.Soumya Sarkar was the last man dismissed when he flicked man of the match Rashid to Ibrahim Zadran at short leg with 20 balls left in the game. “We won this game against a side like Bangladesh,” said Rashid, who made his debut as the youngest-ever Test captain and finished with 11 wickets.“We are new to this format, so credit goes to the coaching staff for their support. Everyone applied themselves and stuck to their plans.” Cricket has become the national sport of war-torn Afghanistan, with many of the Afghan players cutting their cricketing teeth in refugee camps in Pakistan.The squad played their first Test last year, losing to cricketing giants India but claimed their first-ever victory in Test cricket in March when they beat fellow newcomers Ireland. Bangladesh skipper Shakib was full of praise for Rashid’s side.“They deserve this victory. After playing for 20 years, we can’t say it’s a build-up process,” he said.“It’s been a while since we played our last Test match, but Afghanistan kept the pressure on us, credit goes to their hard work.” Afghanistan have become a growing force in the sport in recent years, gaining one-day international status in 2009 and reaching two 50-over World Cups including the recent tournament in England. They have also been part of four Twenty20 World Cups.Play in Bangladesh’s port city of Chittagong started on the fifth day at 1:00pm local time after rain wiped out the first session.Afghanistan first innings 342 (Rahmat Shah 102, Asghar Afghan 92, Rashid Khan 51; Taijul Islam 4-116)Bangladesh first innings 205 (Mominul Haque 52; Rashid Khan 5-55; M Nabi 3-56)Afghanistan second innings 260 (Ibrahim Zadran 87, Asghar Afghan 50; Shakib Al Hasan 3-58)Bangladesh second innings (136-6 overnight)Liton Das lbw b Zahir 9Shadman Islam lbw b Nabi 41Mosaddek Hossain c Asghar b Zahir 12Mushfiqur Rahim lbw b Rashid 23Mominul Haque lbw b Rashid 3Shakib Al Hasan c Zazai b Zahir 44Mahmudullah c Zadran b Rashid 7Soumya Sarkar c Zadran b Rashid 15Mehidy Hasan lbw b Rashid 12Taijul Islam lbw b Rashid 0Nayeem Hasan not out 1Extras (b4, lb2) 6Total (all out; 61.4 overs) 173Fall of wickets: 1-30 (Liton), 2-52 (Mosaddek), 3-78 (Mushfiqur), 4-82 (Mominul), 5-106 (Shadman), 6-125 (Mahmudullah), 7-143 (Shakib), 8-166 (Mehidy), 9-166 (Taijul), 10-173 (Soumya) Bowling: Yamin 4-1-14-0, Nabi 20-5-39-1, Rashid 21.4-6-49-6, Zahir 15-0-59-3Result: Afghanistan won by 224 runsToss: Afghanistan Umpires: Nigel Llong (Eng), Paul Wilson (Aus)TV Umpire: Nitin Menon (Ind) Match Referee: Chris Broad (Eng).

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