Raza's unbeaten 106 in vain as Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe to clinch T20 series

Sikandar Raza finished unbeaten on 106, but Zimbabwe lost both the match and the series. The Chevrons went down by 19 runs to Afghanistan in Sharjah on Thursday 29 October, in the second of three T20 internationals. Their 202 for five fell short of Afghanistan's 221, and the Afghans have now secured the series with two wins.

The Zimbabwe captain fought on to the very last ball. His 106 came off 56 balls and included nine sixes. Tafadzwa Tsiga, unbeaten on 31, shared an unbroken stand of 120 with him. That resistance brought their side back into the chase, but it could not erase the deficit built up earlier.

A missed chance after an excellent start

Zimbabwe had initially put Afghanistan under real pressure. Brad Evans and Kundai Matigimu removed the early batters, leaving the Afghans on five for four. They were still 38 for five when Azmatullah Omarzai and Ijaz Ahmadzai began rebuilding the innings.

The pair went on to add 142 together. Omarzai finished with 116 off just 50 balls, including twelve sixes. Ahmadzai contributed 52, before Rashid Khan added 25 off six balls. Zimbabwe failed to turn their early wickets into control of the closing overs.

Raza left with too little support to turn the match

To win, the Chevrons needed to reach 222 in an innings limited to 20 overs. At the halfway stage they were 82 for five. Raza and Tsiga then avoided any further loss, but the required run rate had become too steep.

The captain's display kept the chase alive and took Zimbabwe past 200. It was not enough to prolong the suspense in the series, as the final match can no longer change the winner. For the Chevrons, the problem on the night lay as much in the runs conceded after their good start as in the lack of support for Raza early in their reply.

Related: our report on the first match of the series.