Abu Dhabi [UAE], September 9 : Former world number one all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai shattered the record for the fastest fifty in T20Is for Afghanistan after his whirlwind knock at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in the Asia Cup opener on Tuesday.
After opting to bat, Afghanistan were left threadbare at 110/4, courtesy of Hong Kong's spirited bowling display with five overs left. With Afghanistan, in dire need of some firepower, Omarzai stepped on the crease and changed the complexion of the game in a flick.
He flaunted his boundary-hitting nerve and left the Hong Kong team gobsmacked by unleashing a barrage of boundaries. He celebrated his maiden T20I fifty for Afghanistan in just 20 deliveries, the fastest for his side in the format. He bettered Mohammad Nabi's 21-ball effort against Ireland in 2017.
Omarzai offered no clemency to Ayush Shukla in the 19th over and dispatched the first ball, bereft of pace, in front of the sightscreen for a maximum. On the next ball, he smoked the ball over deep extra cover. For the third delivery, he took his time before depositing the ball into the mid-wicket fence.
On the fourth, he cleverly opened the face of his bat and steered the full toss to the third man to complete his half-century. His fruitful exploits eventually ended after he ballooned the ball high in the air and landed in Aizaz Khan's hands, forcing him to return on 53(21).
Omarzai had done the irreparable damage as Afghanistan garnered 78 runs from the last five overs to hammer 188/6 on the board. Afghanistan's belligerent innings was fuelled by Hong Kong's shambolic display on the field. They dropped five catches, the most in a team innings in the T20 Asia Cup.
Opener Sediqullah Atal, who returned unbeaten with 73(52), was dropped thrice, with the first instance occurring in the opening over itself. The dropped chances and wayward bowling towards the end allowed Afghanistan to script a comeback in the contest and post a competitive total.