India defeated Afghanistan by seven wickets on Tuesday to clinch their three-match T20 series with a match to spare, thanks to a blistering 57 off 22 balls from Sanju Samson. The opener's knock, which included four sixes and seven fours, marked his first half-century since the T20 World Cup final earlier this year, where he was named player of the tournament.

Samson's opening partner Abhishek Sharma scored 39 off 19 balls, including four sixes, as the duo amassed 88 runs off just 38 balls. India finished with 163-3 in 14.5 overs. It had won the first T20 by seven wickets as well, at the same venue on Sunday. Afghanistan is playing host in this series, in a unique arrangement, and for the second game running, it finished with an under-par score after India won the toss and opted to field.

All-rounder Nitish Reddy picked 3-24 in three overs as Afghanistan was restricted to 159-8 in 20 overs. Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran scored 37 off 33 balls to ensure his side didn't lose too many wickets in the powerplay again, but the hosts slid from 59-2 to 100-6 in the middle overs. A 48-run partnership off 28 balls between Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi helped Afghanistan recover. Khan hit 28 off 16 balls with three fours and a six, while Nabi scored 20 off 14 balls.

Samson and Sharma set a hectic pace as India raced to 82-0 in the powerplay. Afghanistan used spin in the powerplay as compared to the first game, but to no avail. Rashid Khan came on after the powerplay, getting the breakthrough in the seventh over, as Sharma was out caught at deep midwicket. Samson carried on to reach his seventh T20 half-century off 20 balls. Khan picked a second wicket in the seventh over, as Samson holed out to long-off. But India had powered its way to 100 in 7.1 overs – joint second-quickest for them since 2024.

Skipper Shreyas Iyer was Khan's third victim, out caught at slip, but Ishan Kishan (38 not out) and Tilak Varma (15 not out) polished off the remaining runs without any bother. Earlier, put in to bat, Afghanistan made another poor start. Rahmanullah Gurbaz fell for a second consecutive duck, this time to Arshdeep Singh. The defeat leaves Afghanistan still searching for a win in the series, while India's dominant performance underscores their depth and form ahead of upcoming challenges.

Source: www.aljazeera.com