Mohammad Nabi's brisk fifty and a clinical bowling performance helped Afghanistan knock Zimbabwe out of the World T20 with an emphatic 59-run win to storm into the Super 10s in Nagpur Saturday. Batting first, Afghanistan rode on a 98-run stand between Nabi (52) and Samiullah Shenwari (43) to post 186 for six, a score which proved to be a winning total after Zimbabawe was shot out for 127 in 19.4 overs. In-form opener Mohammad Shahzad provided a blazing start to the innings with a 23-ball 40 but his departure saw Afghanistan lose their way to 63 for four. Medium-pacer Tinashe Panyangara grabbed three wickets to rattle the top-order after left-arm spinner Sean Williams got dangerman Shahzad back in the dugout. Nabi, who registered his highest T20 score, and Shenwari then got together to turn things around in the knockout encounter, with some precise power hitting. "Very happy with my performance, especially in this main match and it was a tough game in the qualifying round," said Nabi. The batting duo combined the right dose of caution and aggression and Shahzad's early blitz made sure that the Zimbabwe attack looked pedestrian. "The start was very good, the way Shahzad played in the first five overs. It was quite good. Then the three wickets put us under pressure, the coach (Inzamamul Haq) told me to take singles until the 14th over and then the last six can be used for the big hits," said Nabi. "On that kind of pitch, 150 could be a winning target. But if you have wickets in hand, you can go for more." Zimbabwe, which remains winless against Afghanistan in five attempts so far, was never in the chase after losing its openers early. Burdened by the increasing run-rate the Zimbabwe batting failed to get going with Sikandar Raza top-scoring with 15. Leg-spinner Rashid Khan turned on the heat with a three-wicket haul as medium-pacer Hamid Hassan contributed with two scalps. A crucial victory against a Full Member side for the Inzamam-coached team is indeed a great achievement and captain Asghar Stanikzai could not hide his excitement in the post match presentation. "I thank the Afghanistan people who have been praying for us. They are always praying for us and thinking about us," Stanikzai addressed the home fans in his native language. Ranked ninth in world T20 rankings, Afghanistan will now meet defending champion Sri Lanka, South Africa, England and West Indies in Group 1 of the Super 10s. In the second match of the day, Scotland won the battle of pride against Hong Kong by eight wickets via Duckworth/Lewis (D/L) method in an inconsequential Group A tie. Chasing a revised target of 76 in 10 overs in the rain-hit match, Scotland cantered home with 12 balls to spare and registered its first win in an International Cricket Council tournament. Earlier, the Preston Mommsen-led side bowled well to restrict Hong Kong, who remained winless in the 16-team event, to 127 for seven in 20 overs. In Group A matches Sunday, Ireland meets Netherlands, while Bangladesh will fight it out with Oman for a place in the Super 10s. South Africa, England win World T20 warmups South Africa defeated host India by four runs in their World Twenty20 warm-up match in Mumbai Saturday after England had earlier beaten New Zealand by six wickets. The Proteas won the toss and opted to bat, going on to make 196 for eight in 20 overs at the western Indian city's Wankhede Stadium. JP Duminy top scored for South Africa, hitting 67 off 44 balls. His impressive knock included six fours and three sixes. Left-handed batsman Quinton de Kock stylishly played his way to 56 runs before retiring not out. Hardik Pandya was the pick of India's bowlers, grabbing three wickets. India's run chase got off to a bad start with opener Rohit Sharma going for ten and Virat Kohli managing just one before being caught off only his second ball. Shikhar Dhawan was India's highest scorer with 73 while Suresh Raina notched 41 and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni recorded 30 as the home side got into their groove. But in the end it fell just short on a total of 192 for three. In the day's earlier game, New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat with captain Kane Williamson smashing a 63. Williamson's knock included nine fours as the Black Caps made 169 for eight in their 20 overs. The second highest scorer for New Zealand was Ross Taylor who finished on 19 not out. England opener Jason Roy then powered his way to 55 off 36 balls, including seven runs and two sixes, while Alex Hales notched 44 as England reached 170 for four with four balls remaining. Leg-spinner Adil Rashid was the standout performer of England's bowling attack, grabbing three wickets for just 15 runs. India play New Zealand on Tuesday in the first Super 10 group-stage game of the tournament. England is in action against the West Indies Wednesday before facing South Africa Friday in the Proteas' first match of the championship.
