Under the leadership of captain Rashid Khan, Afghanistan showcased their bowling prowess to clinch a 10-run victory over Ireland in the second T20 international of their three-match series in Sharjah on Friday.
With this win, Afghanistan leveled the series 1-1 as Ireland's comprehensive multi-format tour against Afghanistan nears its conclusion.
Despite a brave innings of 39 runs off 18 balls by Gareth Delany, Ireland fell short in their pursuit of the required 18 runs in the last over to secure victory.
Unfortunately, a single six wasn't sufficient as the penultimate ball yielded no runs, and Delany was caught on the boundary off Fazalhaq Farooqi on the final delivery.
Ireland began their chase of 153 runs strongly, with opening pair Andy Balbirnie and Paul Stirling stitching together a 49-run partnership before Stirling's dismissal in the sixth over.
Subsequently, Irish captain Balbirnie fell lbw to Nangeyalia Kharote for 45 runs, leaving Ireland's lower order with a daunting task, despite Delany's late heroics.
Rashid Khan's exceptional performance, claiming four wickets for just 14 runs, including a crucial double-wicket 16th over, effectively sealed the victory for the hosts by dismissing George Dockrell and Mark Adair.
Earlier, Afghanistan won the toss and elected to bat first, posting a total of 152-9 in their allotted 20 overs.
Mohammad Nabi led the charge for the hosts with a gritty 59 off 38 balls, featuring six fours and three sixes, before falling to Ben White's delivery, caught by Stirling.
Adair stood out among the Irish bowlers, finishing with figures of 3-27, as Afghanistan's top order struggled, with Mohammad Ishaq and Azmatullah Omarzai both departing without scoring.
Despite opener Sediqullah Atal's resilient 35 runs, he was run out, leaving Afghanistan at 93-5 with 6.5 overs remaining.
Khan's valuable contribution of 25 runs from 12 balls at number nine propelled Afghanistan past the 150-run mark.
Josh Little continued his impressive bowling form with the early dismissal of opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz in the second over.
The series decider will take place on Monday in Sharjah, with both teams aiming for victory, as Ireland seeks to secure a T20I series win to complement their Test victory, while Afghanistan aims to replicate their success from the ODI series earlier in March.
