Afghanistan beat Ireland to clinch their maiden Test win in Dehradun on Monday, March 18. The win was setup by the bowlers and was capped off by resilient innings by Rahmat Shah.
However, for Ireland, Tim Murtagh scripted a unique record as he became the first number 11 batsman to make 25-plus scores in each innings of a Test match. His half-century in the first innings bailed Ireland from a precarious situation. In the process, he became only the 11th number 11 to top-score in a Test innings.
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“Take nothing away from Afghanistan - they are the deserved winners and they played really well. Still our second game and quite a few players made their debut and I’m sure some of them want to kick-on and contribute more. It’s been a long tour, but the lads have been very good. You are never tired to play Test cricket, it’s always a special feeling,” Ireland captain William Porterfield said after the match.
“I would like to congratulate the country for this historic win. The wicket in the ODIs was more suited to spin and this wicket was more suitable for batting and glad to have scored some runs for my team. I stayed at the wicket and we played session by session. Want to give credit to the bowlers, they bowled really well,” Rahmat Shah, who was declared man of the match, said after the match.
{{/usCountry}}“I would like to congratulate the country for this historic win. The wicket in the ODIs was more suited to spin and this wicket was more suitable for batting and glad to have scored some runs for my team. I stayed at the wicket and we played session by session. Want to give credit to the bowlers, they bowled really well,” Rahmat Shah, who was declared man of the match, said after the match.
{{/usCountry}}Asghar Afghan, the winning skipper, wanted to build on the momentum leading into the World Cup and made it clear that he wanted to make every game count.
“Really happy for my team, people and the cricket board. Before we used to play two-day, three-day cricket and now we are playing the longer form and getting to play Test cricket. So, it’s a special feeling. I want to congratulate all the lads in the team, they have been absolutely brilliant. We have got a few games before the World Cup and we want to make every opportunity count,” Asghar said.