Asia Cup 2025: Afghanistan Launches Campaign with Dominating Victory Over Hong Kong

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.

Asia Cup 2025: Afghanistan vs Hong Kong Highlights

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.

Omarzai, Sediqullah give strong finish

The off-spinner struck again in his next over, sending Gulbadin Naib (5 off 8) back to the pavilion, leaving Afghanistan on 95/4 in 13 overs. Two quick wickets stemmed the run flow for the next three overs, but Hong Kong’s poor outing in the field continued to hurt them. Atal was given another reprieve after completing his third T20I half-century off 42 balls as Ehsan Khan failed to grab a simple catch at point.

With just four overs left in the innings, Azmatullah Omarzai turned his beast mode and brought up his maiden T20I half-century off just 20 balls — the fastest by an Afghanistan batter. At the other end, Sediqullah Atal also shifted gears and began clearing the ropes with utmost ease as the duo got involved in a massive 82-run stand off just 35 balls. Their explosive partnership, facilitated by a few more dropped chances from Hong Kong, propelled Afghanistan’s score to 188/6 in their 20 overs.

Hong Kong surrender in run chase

In reply, Hong Kong’s chase never got going as opener Anshuman Rath returned to the pavilion without opting to go for DRS, despite having a clear gap between bat and ball. Zeeshan Ali (5 off 6) also fell prey to Azmatullah Omarzai, while Nizakat Khan (0) and Kalhan Challu’s (4 off 8) run-outs further added to the misery to leave Hong Kong reeling at 22/4 in 4.3 overs.

Babar Hayat tried to wage a lone battle but still couldn’t catch up to the required run rate. He was finally dismissed on 39 (43), getting caught at deep mid-wicket at Sediqullah Atal. Hong Kong was eventually restricted to 94/9 as Gulbadin Naib (2/8) and Fazalhaq Farooqi (2/16) scalped two wickets each.

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.