Azmatullah Omarzai leads Afghanistan to five-wicket win over Bangladesh in ODI opener

Abu Dhabi: Azmatullah Omarzai delivered a stunning all-round performance to guide Afghanistan to a convincing five-wicket win over Bangladesh in the opening ODI of their three-match series in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old shone with both bat and ball — claiming 3 for 40 to help bowl Bangladesh out for 221, before contributing a composed 40 off 44 balls to steer Afghanistan’s chase. His efforts helped the visitors bounce back strongly after their T20I series defeat earlier this week.

Bangladesh struggled from the outset after being put in to bat. Omarzai struck twice in the opening overs, removing Tanzid Hasan (10) and skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto (2), leaving the hosts wobbling early. Rashid Khan then joined the attack, dismissing Saif Hassan (26) to tighten Afghanistan’s grip.

Tawhid Hridoy and Mehidy Hasan offered resistance, stitching together a solid 101-run partnership for the fourth wicket. However, their promising stand ended when Hridoy was run out by Hashmatullah Shahidi for 54. Mehidy followed soon after, trapped lbw by Rashid for 60, triggering a late collapse. Bangladesh were eventually bundled out for 221 in the 48th over.

Afghanistan made a brisk start to their chase. Openers Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmanullah Gurbaz added 50 runs inside nine overs, with both finding boundaries at ease. Tanvir Islam, however, provided Bangladesh some relief by removing Zadran (23), and then Sediquallah Atal (5) fell cheaply.

From there, captain Hashmatullah Shahidi and Omarzai steadied the innings with a vital 59-run partnership for the fifth wicket. Omarzai’s composed knock ended with Afghanistan 27 runs short of the target, but veteran Mohammad Nabi saw them home comfortably with 17 balls to spare.

The day also marked a special achievement for Rashid Khan, who became the first Afghan bowler to claim 200 wickets in ODIs. The leg-spinner finished with figures of 3 for 38 from his 10 overs, dismissing Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Jaker Ali and Nurul Hasan.

Rashid now has 202 wickets in 115 ODIs at an average of 20.28 and an economy rate of 4.23 — a testament to his dominance in white-ball cricket. He remains Afghanistan’s leading wicket-taker, followed by Mohammad Nabi (176) and Dawlat Zadran (115).

The second ODI will be played at the same venue on October 11, where Afghanistan will look to seal the series and continue building momentum ahead of their upcoming fixtures.