Friendship Cup, merciless India: Abhishek blitz over Afghanistan 3-0
Brief results: India (221/7 in 20 overs) beat Afghanistan (94-all in 14.1 overs) by 127 runs. They won the T20I series 3-0 in Delhi.
There was nothing friendly about India’s performance against Afghanistan in the Friendship Cup in Delhi. It was a historic occasion for the Afghans, who hosted India for the first time in a T20I series, as they chose Delhi, a city with one of the largest Afghan populations in the country, as their home venue.
IND vs AFG, 3rd T20I: MAIN | SCORECARD
While India exchanged pleasantries off the field, they were ruthless on it, hammering the designated hosts by 127 runs in the final T20I to clinch the series 3-0.
It was a night to remember for Abhishek. He put on a show for the 26,230 fans who turned up at the Arun Jaitley Stadium over the weekend. The left-handed opener went on a record-breaking knocking spree loaded with boundaries.
ABHISHEK BLITZ IN DELHI
But none of the pre-match chatter has swayed Abhishek Sharma, who has continued his love affair with the Arun Jaitley Stadium, where he averages 56 and strikes in excess of 230.
Abhishek came out swinging from the first over, making it clear that Afghanistan were in for another long night. He soon took on Fazalhaq Farooqi and Azmatullah Omarzai before turning the third into carnage, smashing Farooqi’s 23 runs as India raced through the powerplay.
Sanju Samson joined the attack against the spinners but Abhishek was firmly in the zone. He took on Rashid Khan in the powerplay, had no qualms against the Afghan prime minister, and kept finding boundaries all around the ground. Even after briefly showing respect to Abdullah Ahmadzai, he went straight back into the attack against Mujeeb Ur Rahman and brought up his hundred in just 30 balls.
Abhishek Sharma led the demolition work breaking Rohit Sharma’s record for the fastest T20I hundred by an Indian. In the T20I, he got his third three-figure score, this time in just 30 deliveries. Sanju Samson continued his rejuvenated run with another fifty but India did not finish well and settled for 221 when they had a real chance to push for another score in excess of 250.
But Abhishek’s blistering knock, which included 11 sixes and nine boundaries, was more than enough for Afghanistan, who were perhaps a bit too hospitable as the hosts throughout the series. While their bowlers, including Rashid Khan, were taken to the cleaners, their batting continued to lack the spark needed to push the world champions into their own backyard.
ABHISHEK’S 30 BALL CENTURY IN NUMBERS
Here’s a quick look at some of the records he’s broken.
- 30: His century in just 30 deliveries was the fastest in T20I cricket by a Test nation batsman.
- 2: He also became the first batsman in T20I history to hit two centuries in less than 40 deliveries. He smashed a 37-ball hundred against England last year in Mumbai.
- 94.4%: Abhishek has scored more than 90 percent of his runs through boundaries, which is the most in the history of T20I cricket.
It was a knock of authority and confidence as Abhishek was the only Indian batsman to strike at a rate of over 150 on Thursday. He was eventually dismissed for 108 off 34 balls to end the series with 229 runs from three matches.
If we had a nitpick, India’s inability to hit the gas pedal at the end is something to dissect. India were 184 for 4 at the end of 15 overs but managed just 37 runs in the last five overs and hit only two boundaries.
Captain Shreyas Iyer struggled to keep the pace high, managing just 27 runs from 20 deliveries in the middle, while India’s decision to send Tilak Varma at No.3 and push Ishan Kishan down also backfired. While Abhishek and Samson contributed 158 runs from 69 deliveries, the rest of the batting line-up managed only 63 from 51 deliveries.
Afghanistan managed just 94 runs in just 14.1 overs as Axar Patel led another disciplined bowling effort. Legendary Jasprit Bumrah, who featured in all three matches, boasted his yorkers while Nitish Kumar Reddy continued his good work and added three more wickets to his tally in the third T20I after returning to career-best figures of 3/24 on Tuesday.
Nitish dashed any hopes of an Afghan fightback by picking up the wickets of Azmatullah Omarzai, their best batsman in the series, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman in the same over.
It must have been heartening for the team management to get a full quota of four overs from Nitish Kumar Reddy, who finished with figures of 3 for 25. Youngster Yash Thakur, given an opportunity in place of Arshdeep Singh, returned figures of 1 for 17 in two overs.
NO VAIBHAV SOORYAVANSHI
While India celebrated success in all three matches at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the team management missed the opportunity to give Vaibhav Sooryavanshi a chance. The 15-year-old, who remains a fan favorite around the world, created a lot of buzz in the capital but didn’t get a single chance in the series.
Sanju Samson, who returned to the side after missing the tour of Zimbabwe, kept the outside noise at bay and hit back-to-back fifties to stay ahead in the pecking order.
Before Thursday’s draw, Sooryavanshi had a tossing session along the boundary ropes, raising hopes that he might finally play. Fans rushed to the fence to catch a glimpse of the boy wonder who set the stage on fire in his habit.
However, the Indian team management decided not to give him a chance, to the disappointment of millions, including his father, who flew to Delhi to be with his son throughout the series.
It was a puzzling call from the team management as India took an unassailable 2-0 series lead before Thursday, leaving room to give Sooryavanshi an opportunity. But the young man was forced to warm the benches and raise questions about the possibility of getting a chance at the Asian Games, where India will play a maximum of three matches even if they qualify for the gold medal match.
With a dominant 3-0 win, India signaled their intention to defend their title at the Asian Games. The challenge from predominantly second-tier opponents may not have been enough to worry India, but the Men in Blue ticked all the boxes before heading to Nagoya for a multi-sport continental spectacle.
India will begin their Asian Games campaign with a quarter-final bye.
However, none of that is likely to be on the team’s mind when they fly to Nagoya in the next few days. They will have another opportunity to fine-tune their preparation when they face Japan in an exhibition match on September 22.
– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
17 Sep 2026 22:51 IST