After ODIs, Afghanistan seal landmark T20 series win over Zimbabwe

Bulawayo: Afghanistan continued to display intense competition as they secured a 2-0 Twenty20 series win over Zimbabwe after defeating the hosts by five wickets in a nail-biting second match here at Queen's Sports Club on Wednesday.

Zimbabwe posted a daunting 191-run target after opting to bat first, thanks to a quick-fire 54-run knock by Sean Williams. Richmond Mutumbami and skipper Elton Chigumbura then accelerated the innings by their respective scores of 43 and 33.

In reply, Afghanistan got off to a blistering start as Usman Ghani (65) and Mohammad Shahzad (24) struck a 95-run partnership for the opening partnership.

Although the hosts tried to contain the run-flow by removing wickets in quick succession, Gulbadin Naib continued to unleash a flurry of boundaries to take his side to victory with a ball remaining.

Naib, who bagged the Man of the Match, struck seven boundaries in his 31-ball 56-run knock and also claimed two wickets.

With the win, Afghanistan secured their first T20 series win over a Full Member in a T20 series.

Earlier, Afghanistan had become the first Associate nation to win a multi-game bilateral ODI series against a Test side after defeating Zimbabwe by 73 runs in the decider to clinch the series 3-2.