"Now I understand why Babar Azam used to hold 1 end" - Twitter reacts as Pakistan score 92/9 in 20 overs against Afghanistan

Pakistan registered their lowest T20I total in matches against Afghanistan earlier today (March 24) at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. The Men in Green scored 92/9 in 20 overs after winning the toss and opting to bat first in the opening T20I of the series against Afghanistan.

Shadab Khan is captaining a second-string Pakistan team in their first-ever three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. The two teams only met in one-off matches or multi-nation tournaments prior to this series.

The Sharjah Cricket Stadium has short boundaries, which is why fans hoped for a high-scoring game. However, much to their disappointment, Pakistan could score only 92 runs in 20 overs as Imad Wasim top-scored with a 32-ball 18.

"We didn't expect them to perform like that" - Hamid Hassan lauds Afghanistan bowlers after brilliant show against Pakistan

Although Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were absent from the Men in Green's batting lineup, they still had some top talents like Mohammad Haris, Abdullah Shafique, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Saim Ayub, and Azam Khan in their playing XI. However, none of them got going against Afghanistan's bowlers.

Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan bowled an economical spell of 1/15 in four overs, while Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman bagged two wickets each.

Commenting on Afghanistan's performance after the first innings, the team's bowling coach Hamid Hassan said in a chat with the broadcasters:

Earlier in the evening, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) organized a farewell ceremony for Hamid Hassan. He recently announced his retirement and took over the job of the Afghanistan team's bowling coach. The Afghanistan team gave him a guard of honor before the game.

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