Afghanistan makes history by winning the Emerging Asia Cup 2024

Thanks to the brilliant bowling of Afghanistan A, the team won the Emerging Asia Cup title by defeating Sri Lanka A in the final on 27 October. The applaudable bowling of Bilal Sami and Allah Ghanzanifer laid the foundation for Afghanistan's historic victory. Batting first, Sri Lanka put up a total of 133/7 on the board, which included an unbeaten half-century from Sahan Arachile (64 runs *). Chasing the target, Afghanistan won by scoring 134 runs with 11 balls remaining. Sediqullah Atal played a key role in Afghanistan's title win by playing an unbeaten 55-run innings.

Afghanistan A's bowling attack maintained the lead from the start in the match. Sri Lanka's batsmen struggled in front of Afghanistan's bowlers. From the Sri Lankan lineup, only Sahan Arachile scored an unbeaten 64 off 47 balls, which helped his team reach 133 runs.

The pitch of Al Emirates proved to be difficult for the batsmen. Chasing the target, Afghanistan started with a shock. Opener Zubaid Akbari was dismissed on a golden duck on the first ball. However, Sediqullah Atal showed restraint and spent time at the crease and played aggressive strokes. He remained unbeaten with 55 off 55 balls and played a big role in helping Afghanistan A not only recover from the initial setbacks but also made Afghanistan champions. Darvish Rasooli contributed 24 runs and Karim Janat contributed 33 runs. Wicketkeeper Mohammad Ishaq remained unbeaten on 16 runs in 6 balls.

This win is definitely a historic one for Afghanistan as their young team reached the final by crushing India in the semi-finals. The Indian team had international players like Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma in the squad and they made it to the semi-finals with three consecutive wins. The victory in the Emerging Asia Cup reflects Afghanistan's growing competitive edge in cricket, with promising players set to perform at the senior level in the future.