Afghanistan Premier League (APL) 2018: Mirwais Ashraf stars in Balkh Legends victory

Balkh Legends displayed some great death overs bowling as they beat Nangarhar Leopards by 25 runs in the Afghanistan Premier League 2018. 

Mirwais Ashraf was the star with a spell of 4/19. Chasing 144, Leopards lost wickets at critical junctures before Mirwais destroyed them to earn Legends the win. 

Balkh Legends looked in trouble after managing just 143/7 in 20 overs with the bat. Chris Gayle (20 off 24 balls) and Colin Munro (33 off 27 balls) struggled to get going on a slow Sharjah surface after the loss of Usman Ghani (1) early. Legends lost Gayle and Munro in the same over. Ravi Bopara was out soon setting back Legends to 62/4. 

However, Ryan ten Doeschate (35), Mohammad Nabi (20) and Gulbadin Naib (17) took them to a respectable total.

Nangarhar Leopards were off to quick start, after losing Najeeb Tarakai in the first over, with Anton Devcich and Johnson Charles (17 off 14 balls). Hashmatullah Shahidi (23) and Rahmat Shah (18) made starts but didn't get the big hits. 

However, the biggest wicket came in the form of Devcich (48) in the 18th over. Devcich fell to Ashraf looking for six as the asking rate escalated. Leopards lost Ben Cutting two balls later followed by Mitchell McClenaghan off the next ball. 

Brief scorecard 

Balkh Legends 143/7 in 20 overs (Colin Munro 37, Ryan ten Doeschate 37) beat Nangarhar Leopards 118 in 19.1 overs (Anton Devcich 48, Mirwais Ashraf 4/19) by 25 runs