Riaz, Zubaid help Afghanistan ‘A’ record first win

By M. Shamil Amit

A ton by Riaz Hassan and a half ton Zubaid Akbari laid the foundation for Afghanistan ‘A’ to record a thrilling four-wicket win with two balls to spare against host Sri Lanka ‘A’ in the fourth match of the five ODI series played at the Sooriyawewa Stadium yesterday.
Afghanistan ‘A’ in pursuit of a challenging run chase of 276 runs saw Riaz, who cracked 106 in 128 balls inclusive of 11 sixes, associating in three fruitful partnerships, first with Zubaid, who made 68 in 83 balls with ten boundaries, and the pair gave the visitors a flying start of 133 runs.
This was followed by a 65-run stand for the third wicket with Shahidullah and then 54 runs for the fifth wicket with Nangeyalia Kharote before Riaz was dismissed.
But the foundation for the win had been laid as Afghanistan ‘A’ succeeded in achieving the target of 276 runs to record a thrilling win with two balls to spare and to chalk up their first win.
Earlier in the day, Sri Lanka ‘A’, invited to take first lease of the wicket, lost four early wickets before the completion of the halfway stage of the innings, with the score on 101, before skipper Nishan Madushka and Sonal Dinusha helped them recover.
The pair put on a valuable 137-run stand for the fifth wicket before they were separated with the dismissal of Nishan, who made a top knock of 115 runs in 127 balls, which had nine boundaries and two sixes.
From there on, with Sri Lanka ‘A’ on 238 for 5 in the 46th over, they lost two more wickets, including Sonal, who hit a run-a-ball knock of 78 runs that included six boundaries as the host side ended with a score of 275 for 7.
The two teams will play their fifth and last match on May 7 at the same venue.