Debutants Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey impressed with three wickets each, helping India dismiss Afghanistan for 194 in the rain-affected opening ODI at the HPCA Stadium. Despite a brilliant century by Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who scored the fastest hundred by an Afghan batter in ODIs, India managed to contain Afghanistan’s total.
Gurbaz’s aggressive innings, comprising eight fours and six sixes, posed a threat to India’s bowlers. However, his dismissal shifted the momentum in India’s favor, with Hashmatullah Shahidi and Azmatullah Omarzai being the only other notable contributors for Afghanistan. Brar and Dubey’s disciplined bowling, supported by Arshdeep Singh and Nitish Kumar Reddy, limited Afghanistan’s scoring opportunities.
India faced an early challenge as Afghanistan’s top order crumbled, but Gurbaz’s onslaught tested the Indian bowlers. Despite Gurbaz’s explosive batting, India’s bowlers managed to stage a comeback, restricting Afghanistan’s total. The rain-interrupted match witnessed a thrilling display of cricket, with Gurbaz’s century standing out as a remarkable individual performance.
