Atal, Rasooli fifties, Mujeeb hat-trick power Afghanistan to series win

Afghanistan continued their dominance over West Indies with a comprehensive 39-run win in the second T20I, taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. Fifties from Sediqullah Atal and Darwish Rasooli took them to 189/4 before Mujeeb Ur Rahman sliced through the batting line-up with a four-wicket haul, which included a hat-trick spread across two spells.

Put in to bat, Afghanistan were jolted early after losing both openers inside the powerplay. Rahmanullah Gurbaz fell cheaply to Shamar Joseph and Ibrahim Zadran, who had started positively, was bowled by Matthew Forde. Afghanistan needed some rebuilding and that came through a crucial partnership between Atal and Rasooli, who combined caution with controlled aggression to add 115 for the third wicket.

Rasooli took on the role of aggressor, racing to a 27-ball fifty, while Atal settled in before accelerating through the middle overs. Both batters reached their half-centuries, but their dismissals in successive overs briefly slowed the scoring. Afghanistan, however, finished strongly as Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi took advantage of a costly final over by Gudakesh Motie, adding 19 runs off it to lift the total to a power score.

West Indies were again sloppy in the field, dropping four catches.

The chase never quite gathered momentum. West Indies lost Alick Athanaze to a sharp run-out by Ibrahim Zadran early, and the powerplay yielded just 29 runs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman then struck twice in an over to remove Evin Lewis and Johnson Charles, leaving the hosts three down and well behind the required rate.

Shimron Hetmyer provided a brief spark with a flurry of sixes, counterattacking against Noor Ahmad and Mohammad Nabi during his 17-ball 46, while captain Brandon King anchored the innings from the other end. The pair added 68 off 33 and threatened to revive the chase, but Fazalhaq Farooqi broke the stand by dismissing Hetmyer at a critical moment.

From there, Afghanistan tightened their grip. Mujeeb returned to claim a remarkable hat-trick to finish with 4 for 21. Rashid Khan and Omarzai supported well and wickets fell regularly as West Indies collapsed in the final overs, eventually bowled out for 150 in 18.5 overs.

@B0$ Afghanistan 189/4 (Rasooli 68, Atal 53; Forde 2-25) beat West Indies 150 in 18.5 overs (King 50, Hetmyer 46; Mujeeb 4-21) by 39 runs