Easy win for India over Afghanistan with 38 balls left in first T20 cricket match

Abhishek Sharma's 82 runs and Ishan Kishan's 42 off just 33 balls powered India to a seven-wicket victory over Afghanistan in the first T20 cricket match on Sunday. The match concluded with 38 balls left, as India finished their innings at 157-3 in 13.4 overs. Afghanistan, designated as the home team for the series, were bowled out for 156-8.

Shreyas Iyer won the toss and chose to bowl first, putting Afghanistan into bat. Despite a poor start with Rahmanullah Gurbaz falling for a duck, Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi put on a partnership of 83 runs to rescue the innings. Afghanistan's collapse came late, with Arshdeep Singh claiming three wickets for 19 runs in his four overs.

India's innings saw Sharma and Kishan combine for a 121-run partnership in just 53 deliveries. Sharma reached his half-century off just 22 balls, his 12th half-century for India in T20s. India crossed the 100-run mark in just 8.2 overs, as Sharma accelerated to 50. Despite Sharma and Kishan falling to Mohammad Nabi's off-spin, India's total was too much for Afghanistan to chase down.