Kevin O’Brien, Barry McCarthy help Ireland bundle Afghanistan out for 250 in 2nd ODI at Belfast

Kevin O'Brien and Barry McCarthy picked up 4 wickets each against Afghanistan on Tuesday.

An excellent effort from Kevin O’Brien and Barry McCarthy and Ireland bundled Afghanistan out for 250 in 49.2 overs in the second One-Day International (ODI) at Belfast on Tuesday. O’Brien finished with figures of 4 for 45 in 10 overs. His 4 wickets included Afghanistan’s two crucial batsmen — Mohammad Shahzad and Asghar Stanikzai. Shahzad however did his job of giving his side a great start. He scored 66 of 79. The next batsman for the visitors was Najibullah Zadran with his 61-ball 59. The other dismissals were made by Peter Chase, Barry McCarthy and George Dockrell. McCarthy also picked 4 wickets. Live Cricket Score, Afghanistan vs Ireland 2016, 2nd ODI at Belfast

Junior O’Brien struck in his very second over of the day when he dismissed Javed Ahmadi. He put up a stand of 76 runs for the opening wicket with Mohammad Shahzad before he was bowled in the 16th over. After three consecutive dot balls, a frustrated Ahmadi in desperation for scoring chose a wrong shot and got the ball hit at the top of his middle stump. His 43-ball 29 was inclusive of 3 fours at a strike-rate of 67.44.

Afghanistan’s chief batsman Shahzad once again proved his worth with a sixth ODI half-century as he led his side from the front in terms of scoring runs. He went off the mark with two consecutive boundaries off Tim Mutagh’s bowling. Mutagh’s next 6 overs were pure class. His second over gave away 6 runs, while the Afghans could manage just a run from the next 5 overs of his. Although Mutagh failed to make a breakthrough, he was the most economical bowler for Ireland with final figures of 28 runs in 8 overs.

O’Brien struck again, this time he bagged the big fish. After an excellent innings, a disappointed Shahzad walked back in the 23rd over, leaving Afghanistan at 114 for 2. He lasted at the crease for 79 balls, scored 66 and his knock was inclusive of 8 fours and a six, which was the first of the match. He targeted George Dockrell. He came forward; with all the power he smashed the ball over the cow corner for a lovely shot!

Chase, who gave away a couple of extra runs during the initial stage of the inning also managed to make a breakthrough. Rahmat Shah was his only wicket of the match before Chase finished with figures of 1 for 42 in 10 overs. After a poor start, the final figures figures showed his coming back with some disciplined bowling towards the end of the innings.

Asghar Stanikzai however failed to play a captain’s knock when the side really needed it. He became O’Brien’s third victim who brought his innings to an end in the 27th over. The Afghan skipper struggled against Chase before O’Brien sent him back for a duck after he faced 7 balls. Following his dismissal only Najibullah stuck at the crease.

Brief scores:

Afghanistan 250 in 49.2 Overs (Mohammad Shahzad 66, Najibullah Zadran 59; Kevin O’Brien 4 for 45, Barry McCarthy 4 for 59) vs Ireland

(Sakshi Gupta, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a sports fanatic whose mantra in life is “do only what you enjoy.” Her Twitter handle is @sakshi2929)