Asia Cup 2025: Dark horses Afghanistan crush Hong Kong to begin campaign in style

Afghanistan began their Asia Cup 2025 campaign on a terrific note as they hammered Hong Kong by 94 runs in the curtain-raiser fixture on Tuesday, September 9 at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi. The Rashid Khan-led side didn’t have a perfect game as they were given several reprieves and easy wickets by a sloppy Hong Kong side.

However, they happily accepted everything that came their way and added to the misery of their opponent. Afghanistan also shelled a couple of chances in the field but were still good enough for a lacklustre Hong Kong, who were no match for their team. Sediqullah Atal ruled the batting charts in the opening fixture with his unbeaten innings of 73* (52), studded with six fours and three sixes.

The southpaw began the innings in a stunning fashion as he pulled Ayush Shukla (2/54) for a boundary. However, he was given a reprieve on the fourth delivery as captain Yasim Murtaza failed to hold on to a simple catch at first slip. Despite the early drop, Hong Kong clawed their way back into the match, dismissing Rahmanullah Gurbaz (8 off 5) and Ibrahim Zadran



(1 off 4) in successive overs.

With Afghanistan on 26/2 in 3.2 overs, the experience of Mohammad Nabi (33 off 26) came to his team’s rescue as he added 51 runs for the third wicket with Atal off 41 balls. The duo rotated the strike and also took occasional risks to keep the scoreboard moving. Just when everything seemed to be sailing smoothly for the Afghan batters, Kinchit Shah (2/24, 3 overs) came back with his twin strikes and got the big wicket of Nabi, getting him holed out at long off.

As a result, Afghanistan got their campaign off to a winning start and also boosted their net run rate with a humongous 94-run victory. However, despite a comprehensive victory, they wouldn’t be too pleased with their effort, as their lethargic fielding could well come back to haunt them against the top-ranked teams. Their batting effort could also have found them well short of the massive score they eventually managed to achieve if not for reprieves given by Hong Kong. Hence, the Rashid Khan-led side need to get their act together as they progress ahead into the continental event.