Courtesy: BCCI
On June 15, 2018, Afghanistan recorded a humiliating loss in their debut Test match against India played at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The toss fell in India’s stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane’s favour and he decided to bat first. Riding on the dominating performances from Murali Vijay (105 off 153), Shikhar Dhawan (107 off 96), and Hardik Pandya (71 off 94), the hosts posted 474 runs on the board despite some assistance to the bowlers right throughout. Replying to the colossal total, the Afghan side got bundled out on 109 in their first innings. Spin wizard Ravichandran Ashwin displayed his belligerent side and grabbed a four-wicket haul. Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja also clinched two wickets apiece.
India handed a follow-on to the visitors and this time, the Afghan team looked miserable again. Umesh Yadav attacked Afghanistan with the early scalps of Mohammad Shahzad, Javed Ahmadi, and Mohammad Nabi. In the seventh over of the innings, Ishant Sharma also joined Umesh and got the better of Rahmat Shah. Ravindra Jadeja also broke into the scene and took advantage of the bowling-friendly surface. He bagged four wickets in his nine-over spell. With Ashwin dismissing Wafadar Momand, India folded the Asghar Afghan-led team on 103 before the close of play on day two.
Shikhar Dhawan became the Player of the Match in India’s massive triumph
In India’s humongous an innings and 262-run win, Shikhar Dhawan became the recipient of the player of the match (POTM) award. In the first innings, he played a swift knock of 107 off 96. His innings was studded with 22 boundaries (19 fours and three maximums).
Following the drubbing at the hands of India, Afghanistan clinched their first Test win in the sub-continent nation after nine months. They beat Ireland by seven wickets in a one-off Test contest played in Dehradun from March 15 to 18, 2019. Afghanistan have played nine red-ball matches since 2018, in which they emerged triumphant on three occasions.
