Zimbabwe and Afghanistan played out an exciting, record-setting Test series against each other, ending with both sides achieving record scores. Hashmatullah Shahidi of Zimbabwe Chevrons and Rahmat Shah from Afghanistan Atalans emerged as outstanding performers.
Ben Curran and Newman Nyamhuri both made their ODI debuts for Zimbabwe national cricket team; Bilal Sami and Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar made theirs for Afghan Atalans. The series proved exciting overall.
In this article, we will discuss the main points or high lights of Zimbabwe National Cricket Team vs Afghanistan National Cricket Team Match Scorecard.
Here are the details of the last five official matches between the Zimbabwe National Cricket Team and Afghanistan, across all formats (Tests, ODIs, T20Is), based on the most recent data:
| # | Date | Format | Venue (Host) | Winner | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jan 2–6, 2025 | Test | Bulawayo | Afghanistan | Won by 72 runs ESPN Cricinfo+1 |
| 2 | Dec 21, 2024 | ODI | Harare | Afghanistan | Won by 8 wickets ESPN Cricinfo+1 |
| 3 | Dec 19, 2024 | ODI | Harare | Afghanistan | Won by 232 runs ESPN Cricinfo+1 |
| 4 | Dec 17, 2024 | ODI | Harare | No result | Match abandoned ESPN Cricinfo+1 |
| 5 | Dec 14, 2024 | T20I | Harare | Afghanistan | Won by 3 wickets |
Zimbabwe vs Afghanistan T20I Match Scorecard
Afghanistan gained the upper hand against Zimbabwe with an emphatic victory to take an early lead in their three-match T20I series. Zimbabwe were completely outplayed across all departments and will need to come up with new plans ahead of game two. Afghanistan batsmen excelled, scoring 194 runs for an emphatic win while their bowlers never let hosts off the hook.
Zimbabwe made an encouraging start, but were unable to capitalise and wickets soon began falling regularly. While their middle order did manage to give some spark, Zimbabwe lost too many wickets too quickly and their innings never really found an equilibrium.
Afghanistan came back strongly and nipped victory from Zimbabwe with three balls remaining, thanks to Nabi who scored an astounding 15-ball 40 off just 15 balls! Azmatullah and Naib both contributed valuable runs as well.
Zimbabwe batsmen struggled to get off to an effective start and were all out for just 56 runs in their opening innings. Though their lower order tried hard to recover the situation, the bowlers couldn’t maintain momentum and maintain momentum either.
Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi made headlines for his record-setting 246 not out against Zimbabwe at Abu Dhabi, surpassing his previous best of 200 not out in an incredible third wicket partnership of 364 runs with Rahmat Shah.
Afghan spinners were instrumental in their victory and Mohammad Nab was brilliant, taking four wickets for just eight runs and picking off Blessing Muzarabani to deny hosts any chance of an unlikely comeback. For his superb effort he was awarded Man of the Match status and presented with his award.
Zimbabwe vs Afghanistan Test Match Scorecard
Zimbabwe were in some difficulty at 44/4 during their first innings and needed strong partnerships to bring them back on course, yet Sean Williams (35) and Craig Ervine (22) worked their magic and secured them a respectable total of 228 despite Sikandar Raza being dismissed early.
Afghanistan was dominant in their second innings and scored an unprecedented record total of 699 with less than eight balls remaining against Zimbabwe, surpassing their previous best total of 586 against them in 2021. They also set a new highest test match total record. Afghan batsmen enjoyed a phenomenal day aided by Zimbabwean bowlers’ inconsistent and poor catching skills as well as unreliable bowling techniques.
Zimbabwe were ultimately unable to stop Afghanistan from winning the Test series 2-1, as Afghanistan were led by Brian Bennett, Darwish Rasooli and Azmatullah Omarzai who excelled for them throughout. Meanwhile Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor provided exceptional performances for Zimbabwe in this tournament.
After an initially disappointing start to their season, Zimbabwe have found some form. They shocked Australia in the opening match of the T20 World Cup in March before beating South Africa to win that match as well as defeating reigning champs South Africa again shortly thereafter. They eventually fell short against Pakistan but managed to pick up several victories throughout this series.
They achieved their first ODI series win since 2009 when they defeated UAE 4-0, winning two and drawing one match each in Bulawayo and Harare respectively. As a result, Zimbabwe are currently ranked fourth on the ICC ODI rankings.
Ben Curran, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Richard Ngarava, Tinotenda Maposa and Newman Nyamhuri all made their ODI debuts for Zimbabwe national cricket team while Bilal Sami, Sediqullah Atal and Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar from Afghanistan made their Test debuts; Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine made his ODI debut. Rain delayed play until 14:40 local time before play commenced; play resumed at 14:40 local time before starting in Bulawayo; Thursday’s second Test will start!
Zimbabwe vs Afghanistan ODI Match Scorecard
Afghanistan will go for victory against Zimbabwe after an exhilarating first Test ended with record scores from both teams, leaving both sides looking at winning the series 2-1. Sean Williams, Regis Chakabva and Sikandar Raza excelled with bat in hand while Hashmatullah Shahidi and Rahmat Shah made headlines with the ball.
The series had initially been scheduled to include three T20Is and five ODIs; however, Zimbabwe changed the fixture list by moving key matches to weekends to improve fan access at Harare Sports Club – this led to Afghanistan playing their opening ODI on Tuesday 17 December instead of Thursday 12 December as initially planned.
Afghanistan will be firm favourites after their impressive showing in Game 2, but their bowling was ineffective against India’s batsmen, leading to the match being reduced to 28 overs per side due to rain. Their visitors should employ more disciplined play and take advantage of a pitch which favours spinners.
Afghanistan resumed Day 3 at Queens Sports Club after overnighting on 95 for two. They suffered some early wickets as they struggled to keep pace with Australia but were given a boost by Hashmatullah Shahidi (141 not out) and Rahmat Shah’s unbroken stand (231 not out). Shah broke a variety of national records while leading Afghanistan on their remarkable comeback on Day 3.
Zimbabwe will look to exert pressure on Afghanistan as they attempt to gain a lead heading into the final day, yet Afghanistan should feel confident of holding their nerve and remain competitive. Zimbabwe’s batting performance so far in this match has been inconsistent; only two big partnerships helped propel them to 227 for three at lunch on Sunday.
Afghan batsmen possess high quality and depth, providing opportunities to build significant partnerships. Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi can contribute greatly to putting up a reasonable total in the final session, while Sediqullah Atal and Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar offer plenty of assistance on the field.
Zimbabwe vs Afghanistan T20I Series Scorecard
Zimbabwe and Afghanistan’s series is tied at 1-1 after the second match was played at Harare on Friday. Although Zimbabwean batters made some positive starts against Afghan bowlers, their long partnerships never really materialised to pose any real threats to victory for either side.
The visitors got off to a slow start and found themselves reduced to 44/3 by the end of the powerplay. Brian Bennett and Dion Myers helped them recover, reaching 145/6 with seven wickets remaining and Naveen-ul-Haq taking three wickets; Rashid Khan took two to give Afghanistan a chance of victory in their last over.
Rahmat Shah hit an extraordinary 231 to lead Afghanistan to an astounding 425/2 score on Day Three of their first Test match at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. Afghanistan recorded their highest-ever total in any Test thanks to an unbroken 361-run partnership between Shah and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi that broke their previous best partnership of 354. It marked an incredible feat on both counts!
Zimbabwe were only able to add 77 runs in the final over and were bowled out for just 127. Their batsman attempted a boundary but was caught out at short midwicket instead – rendering that final ball an irredeemably no-ball!
Zimbabwe made an admirable effort despite their low score, though their batting line-up wasn’t ideal for T20I cricket. However, luckily for them some batters will be available for T20I series; hopefully their performance in this match can improve upon its showing; Hamilton Masakadza, Sikandar Raza, Sean Williams and Javed Ahmadi all show promise of doing just that; however Hamilton Mpofu will surely be missed; they’ll want to make changes so their top players are back into their sides for subsequent matches.