Rashid, Ahmadi give Afghanistan the upper-hand

Afghanistan rode on Rashid Khan's five-wicket haul and Javed Ahmadi's century to gain the upper hand on the first day of its ICC Intercontinental Cup clash against Hong Kong at the Tin Kwong Road Recreation Ground in Mong Kok on Friday (October 20).

Babar Hayat's decision to bat first didn’t quite work for Hong Kong as the home side was bowled out for just 142 in 47 overs. By the close of play, Afghanistan, now coached by Dean Jones, had reached 270 for 2 in 50 overs, with a lead of 128 runs.

For Hong Kong, after Dawlat Zadran had accounted for Matt Stiller early, Christopher Carter, Hayat and Nizakat Khan got off to good starts but all of them fell to Rashid, the 19-year-old legspinner. Carter, the wicketkeeper-batsman, was the first to go for 21, followed by Hayat (39) and Nizakat (16).

Hayat’s remained the best score of the innings as Anshuman Rath, Ehsan Khan and Aizaz Khan failed to survive for long and Hong Kong slumped to 97 for 7 inside 33 overs. Waqas Khan (23) and Waqas Barkat (23 not out) added some runs later on to add a bit of meat to the Hong Kong total before Rashid returned to finish off the innings and complete his five-for. He ended with 5 for 65, while Dawlat had 3 for 15.

In reply, Ahmadi and Ihsanullah Janat shared a 124-run opening-wicket stand to put Afghanistan in the driver’s seat. The two scored at a decent pace before Rath dismissed Ihsanullah. The right-hand batsman smacked eight fours and a six in an 82-ball 63.

Despite losing his partner, Ahmadi carried on to complete his century. His 108 came off 113 balls and was studded with 16 fours and two sixes, and his knock finally ended in form of a run-out.

Rahmat Shah (34 not out) and Asghar Stanikzai (58 not out) then made sure that Afghanistan ended the day well on top.