Mohammad Shahzad enters the record books, Afghanistan win Desert T20 tournament

Afghanistan swashbuckling opener Mohammad Shahzad entered the record books in the Desert T20I tournament in Dubai where he became the first cricketer in the world to hit two fifties in two separate matches on a single day. This record will obviously take some beating because we rarely have two matches for the same team on a single day, especially in international cricket.

On the way to his mindboggling record, Shahzad also led his nation to a historic win in the Desert T20I tournament. It was an eight-team affair between the Associate Nations which was held in the United Arab Emirates. Shahzad took his chance of achieving this rare feat as both Semi-final and the final were played on the same day at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

Shahzad blasted his way to 60 balls 80 against Oman in the Semi-final as Afghanistan coasted home by 8 wickets and with 9 balls. In the 2nd Semi-final Ireland scored a mammoth 211 before bowling out Scotland for 113 in just 15.1 overs to secure a comprehensive 98 runs victory. The final were played under lights and the Afghanistan bowlers bowled splendidly to bowl out the Irish for a mere 71 runs after winning the toss and fielding first.

It was difficult for Shahzad to get to the record as only 72 runs were required to win. His partner Nawroz Mondal gave most of the strike to Shahzad as the hard-hitter blasted his way to 40 balls 50 as the Afghans chased down the total within the 8th over. While Shahzad remained unbeaten on 52, Mangal remained undefeated on 17.

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Shahzad was instrumental in Afghanistan winning against West Indies in the 2016 World Twenty20 in India and he was seen dancing with Chris Gayle after their historic win. He has been a revelation for the Asian minnows and has got them off to a blistering start on many occasions.