https://arab.news/2ext6
- Afghan captain Rashid Khan took three wickets to help restrict Pakistan to 141-8, with Fakhar Zaman top-scoring with 27
- Nawaz picked up 5-19 in total, his best figures in T20Is, as Pakistan skittled Afghanistan out for just 66 in 15.5 overs
SHARJAH: Pakistan laid down a marker ahead of the Asia Cup as Mohammad Nawaz took a hat-trick in a 75-run win over Afghanistan in their tri-series final in Sharjah on Sunday.
Nawaz picked up 5-19 in total — his best figures in T20 internationals — as Pakistan skittled Afghanistan out for 66 in 15.5 overs while defending a modest 142-run target on a tricky pitch.
Afghan captain Rashid Khan took three wickets to help restrict Pakistan to 141-8, with Fakhar Zaman top-scoring with 27.
Nawaz dismissed Darwish Rasooli and Azmatullah Omarzai off successive deliveries for ducks and then removed Ibrahim Zadran for nine off the first ball of his next over to complete a hat-trick.
Pakistan’s players celebrate after taking the wicket of Afghanistan’s Ibrahim Zadran during the T20 international cricket match against Afghanistan in Sharjah, UAE, on September 7, 2025. (AFP)
Nawaz became the third Pakistani bowler after Faheem Ashraf and Mohammad Hasnain to achieve the feat in T20Is.
Rashid (17) and Sediqullah Atal (13) were the only batters to reach double figures as Afghanistan recorded their second lowest total in T20Is, behind their 56 all out against South Africa in last year’s World Cup semifinals.
Earlier, Pakistan, who won the toss and batted, also struggled against spin.
Pakistan’s Fakhar Zaman plays a shot during the T20 international cricket match against Afghanistan in Sharjah, UAE, on September 7, 2025. (AFP)
Nawaz made a 21-ball 25 with two sixes while skipper Salman Agha labored to a 27-ball 24.
Zaman added 49 for the second wicket with Saim Ayub (17) after opener Sahibzada Farhan fell off the third ball of the match for a duck.
Rashid dismissed Zaman in his first over and then accounted for Hasan Nawaz (15) and Agha, but only after his opposite number struck him for two sixes.
Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan (center) celebrate after taking the wicket of Pakistan’s Fakhar Zaman during the T20 international cricket match against Pakistan in Sharjah, UAE, on September 7, 2025. (AFP)
Afghanistan next open their Asia Cup campaign on Tuesday against Hong Kong in a Group B clash in Abu Dhabi.
Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are the other two teams in their group. Pakistan will face arch-rivals India, Oman and the United Arab Emirates in Group A.