Afghanistan opened their ODI Tri-Nation Series in UAE 2026 campaign in emphatic style on Monday, thrashing Zimbabwe by 158 runs in the 2nd match at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Sediqullah Atal’s magnificent 102 and Ibrahim Zadran’s 90 powered Afghanistan to 294 after they chose to bat, before Rashid Khan’s magical spell of 4 for 17 ripped through Zimbabwe, who were bundled out for just 136 in 38.4 overs.
Afghanistan’s Innings — Atal’s Century Sets It Up
After Rahmat Shah won the toss and batted, Rahmanullah Gurbaz attacked from the start, smashing three fours and a six in a 20-ball 25 before dragging Ernest Masuku onto his stumps. Sediqullah Atal and Ibrahim Zadran then took control, adding 140 runs for the second wicket. Atal, fresh off a Test hundred against Bangladesh last week, completed his third ODI century with eight fours and a six in a 110-ball 102. Zadran played some glorious drives and lofted Sikandar Raza over long-on, but fell for 90 — dismissed in the nineties for the fourth time in his short career. Zimbabwe fought back brilliantly at the death: Masuku (3 for 44) and Brad Evans (3 for 47) led a comeback that saw Afghanistan lose five wickets for just 34 runs in the last five overs, with Blessing Muzarabani (2 for 68) and Raza (1 for 54) chipping in. Afghanistan were bowled out for 294.
Zimbabwe’s Chase Crumbles Against Rashid
Chasing 295, Zimbabwe’s innings never got going. Fazalhaq Farooqi struck twice up front — Ben Curran bowled for a duck and Tafadzwa Tsiga edging behind — before Brendan Taylor was run out and Brian Bennett (31) was trapped lbw by Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, leaving Zimbabwe reeling at 43 for 4. Skipper Sikandar Raza (48) and Ryan Burl (31) resisted with a 64-run fifth-wicket stand, the only meaningful partnership of the innings. Then Rashid Khan took over: three lbws and a bowled, finishing with a stunning 4 for 17 in eight overs. Brad Evans hit a breezy 14, but Mohammad Nabi and sharp fielding wrapped things up as Zimbabwe folded for 136 in 38.4 overs.
Key Performances
- Sediqullah Atal — 102 off 110 balls (8 fours, 1 six); Player of the Match, his third ODI century
- Ibrahim Zadran — 90 off 96 balls (9 fours, 2 sixes); 140-run stand with Atal
- Rashid Khan — 4 for 17 in 8 overs, tearing through Zimbabwe’s middle order
- Ernest Masuku (3 for 44) and Brad Evans (3 for 47) — led Zimbabwe’s death-overs fightback
- Sikandar Raza — 48 off 80, the only Zimbabwe batter to pass 35
What It Means for the Tri-Series
Afghanistan have opened their account with two points and a massive net run-rate boost in their first match of the tournament. Zimbabwe, who started the series with a commanding 99-run win over Bangladesh, see their own net run-rate take a serious hit from this heavy defeat. With Bangladesh still to face both sides, the race for the final remains wide open, and Afghanistan’s huge margin of victory could prove decisive when qualification comes down to the numbers.
Full Scorecard
Afghanistan Innings — 294 all out (50 ov, RR 5.88)
| Batter | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | b Masuku | 25 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 125.00 |
| Ibrahim Zadran | c Tsiga b Evans | 90 | 96 | 9 | 2 | 93.75 |
| Sediqullah Atal | c Tsiga b Sikandar Raza | 102 | 110 | 8 | 1 | 92.72 |
| Rahmat Shah (c) | b Masuku | 7 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 58.33 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | c Taylor b Masuku | 8 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 88.88 |
| Hashmatullah Shahidi | c Burl b Muzarabani | 28 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 93.33 |
| Mohammad Nabi | c Sikandar Raza b Evans | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 112.50 |
| Rashid Khan | b Evans | 8 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 114.28 |
| Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar | c Masakadza b Muzarabani | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Ziaur Rahman | not out | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Fazalhaq Farooqi | run out (Madhevere/Taylor) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
Extras: 10 (b 3, lb 2, nb 2, w 3). Fall of wickets: 1-50 (Gurbaz, 7.1 ov), 2-190 (Zadran, 31.6 ov), 3-202 (Rahmat, 35.3 ov), 4-217 (Omarzai, 37.6 ov), 5-259 (Atal, 44.4 ov), 6-272 (Shahidi, 46.2 ov), 7-283 (Rashid, 47.5 ov), 8-290 (Ghazanfar, 48.6 ov), 9-292 (Nabi, 49.2 ov), 10-294 (Farooqi, 49.6 ov).
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | Econ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blessing Muzarabani | 9 | 0 | 68 | 2 | 7.55 |
| Brad Evans | 10 | 0 | 48 | 3 | 4.80 |
| Ernest Masuku | 8 | 0 | 44 | 3 | 5.50 |
| Sikandar Raza | 10 | 0 | 54 | 1 | 5.40 |
| Wellington Masakadza | 4 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 7.50 |
| Ryan Burl | 4 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 6.25 |
| Wessly Madhevere | 5 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 4.00 |
Zimbabwe Innings — 136 all out (38.4 ov, RR 3.51)
| Batter | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Bennett | lbw b Ghazanfar | 31 | 40 | 4 | 1 | 77.50 |
| Ben Curran | b Farooqi | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Tafadzwa Tsiga | c Gurbaz b Farooqi | 2 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 15.38 |
| Brendan Taylor | run out (Omarzai) | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 25.00 |
| Sikandar Raza (c) | b Rashid Khan | 48 | 80 | 3 | 1 | 60.00 |
| Ryan Burl | lbw b Rashid Khan | 31 | 63 | 2 | 0 | 49.20 |
| Wessly Madhevere | lbw b Rashid Khan | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 71.42 |
| Brad Evans | c Zadran b Nabi | 14 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 140.00 |
| Wellington Masakadza | run out (Ziaur Rahman) | 2 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 18.18 |
| Ernest Masuku | b Rashid Khan | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Blessing Muzarabani | not out | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
Extras: 2 (w 2). Fall of wickets: 1-13 (Curran, 2.2 ov), 2-25 (Tsiga, 6.1 ov), 3-26 (Taylor, 7.1 ov), 4-43 (Bennett, 12.5 ov), 5-107 (Burl, 31.3 ov), 6-115 (Madhevere, 33.4 ov), 7-124 (Raza, 35.4 ov), 8-134 (Evans, 36.5 ov), 9-135 (Masuku, 37.6 ov), 10-136 (Masakadza, 38.4 ov).
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | Econ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fazalhaq Farooqi | 5 | 1 | 15 | 2 | 3.00 |
| Azmatullah Omarzai | 5 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 3.60 |
| Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar | 7 | 0 | 21 | 1 | 3.00 |
| Ziaur Rahman | 6 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 4.66 |
| Rashid Khan | 8 | 1 | 17 | 4 | 2.12 |
| Mohammad Nabi | 7.4 | 0 | 37 | 1 | 4.82 |
FAQs
Q: Who won the Afghanistan vs Zimbabwe 2nd ODI 2026?
A: Afghanistan won by 158 runs at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on 19 October 2026.
Q: Who was the Player of the Match?
A: Sediqullah Atal, for his 102 off 110 balls.
Q: What were the final scores?
A: Afghanistan 294 all out (50 ov) beat Zimbabwe 136 all out (38.4 ov).
Q: Who took the most wickets in the match?
A: Rashid Khan with 4 for 17 in 8 overs for Afghanistan; for Zimbabwe, Ernest Masuku and Brad Evans took three wickets each.
Q: What does this result mean for the tri-series points table?
A: Afghanistan earned 2 points in their first game; Zimbabwe, who beat Bangladesh in the opener, also sit on 2 points but with a badly damaged net run-rate.
Q: Who won the toss?
A: Afghanistan captain Rahmat Shah won the toss and elected to bat first.
A near-perfect day for Afghanistan: a century, a 140-run stand, and a spin masterclass that wrapped up a 158-run rout. Zimbabwe’s batters had no answers to Rashid Khan on a slowing Abu Dhabi pitch, and their heavy defeat leaves the tri-series wide open heading into the remaining fixtures. Afghanistan will take enormous confidence from this performance as they chase a place in the final.
Full scorecard: https://www.cricinfo.com/series/uae-odi-tri-series-2026-27-1555109/afghanistan-vs-zimbabwe-2nd-match-1555118/full-scorecard
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