Thu Sep 19 04:19:34 UTC 2024: ## Afghanistan Crushes South Africa in ODI Opener
**Sharjah, UAE:** Afghanistan secured a dominant six-wicket victory over South Africa in the first One-Day International on Wednesday, bowling out the Proteas for a paltry 106 runs.
A devastating spell of bowling from Fazalhaq Farooqi (4-35) and AM Ghazanfar (3-20) decimated the South African batting order, with the visitors collapsing to 36/7 at one point.
Farooqi, in particular, was on fire, claiming the wickets of Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram, and Tony de Zorzi in quick succession. Ghazanfar added to the misery by dismissing Tristan Stubbs, Jason Smith, and Kyle Verreynne for ducks.
South Africa narrowly avoided their lowest ODI score ever, eventually reaching 106 thanks to a late fightback from Wiaan Mulder, who scored a half-century.
Afghanistan’s chase was relatively comfortable, despite losing early wickets. Azmatullah Omarzai (25 not out) and Gulbadin Naib (34) guided their team to victory in just 26 overs.
This crushing defeat highlights the vulnerability of the South African batting line-up, who will need to find a way to bounce back quickly if they want to level the series.
First Piper 