South Africa vs Afghanistan, T20 World Cup 2026: Gurbaz hits three straight sixes but Afghanistan fall short by four runs in Double Super Over thriller

Rabada's no ball that gave Noor Ahmad a life and extended the match.

Noor's six that took Afghanistan to the brink of a win.

Rabada's stunning effort to run Fazalhaq out (poor running by the Afghanistan No 11 too).

Afghanistan smashing 17 in the first Super Over.

With the match all but done, Stubbs smashin a six to force a second Super Over.

South Africa smashing 23 in the second Super Over.

And then Gurbaz... oh Gurbaz! Three sixes on the trot, then needed a four to force another Super Over... but out caught.

AND BREATHE.

IT IS A WIDE! AND WE MIGHT HAVE ANOTHER TIE IF GURBAZ HITS A FOUR!

GURBAZ WITH ANOTHER SIX!!! This time it is fuller, and hit over long on. Jansen can't hold on.

TWO BALLS TO GO... TWO SIXES NEEDED.

Swing and a miss... complete mishit from Nabi outside offstump and it is a dot ball.

And second ball, Nabi slices one to the fielder at point. High catch. And Afghanistan's match is all but done here.

Oh hello, that is a one-handed high catch by Miller. What an afternoon for him.

Ravi Shastri with some mood commentary from the sidelines... presumably to allow Dale Steyn to catch some breath too! And spare a thought for Kass Naidoo as well, what a thriller to call and they have matched the energy of action in the field.

Shastri meanwhile says 10-12,000 fans are in the venue and they are getting their money worth.

Right then... 24 needed and Ngidi cannot bowl this. Looks like Marco Jansen. Not a bad option to hae eh?

For AFG, Nabi is padded up... and Azmatullah too.

"I actually don't know if I should scold Rabada or thank him...": Haha, Steyn!

Miller manages to get a double off the third ball off a short ball from Azmat, slower bouncer. That seems to be the ploy.

And then IT IS MILLER TIME! Short ball, smashed over midwicket for a SIX! HUGE SIX! That's a Miller special... 95m!

Ninety Five Meters!

And Azmatullah completely misses the length, it is a full toss, and smashed over square leg. Another massive six.

South Africa are asking for a no ball. 21 with one ball to go.

LOW FULL TOSS! AND STUBBS SOMEHOW DIGS THIS OVER THE FIELDER AT LONG OFF!

IT IS A SIX BY STUBBS AND IT IS A TIED SUPER OVER!

We have another Super Over.

WHAT A BALL. BUT WHAT A SLICE OF LUCK! Yorker from Fazalhaq, the outside edge goes for four past Gurbaz.

SA need 7 off 2 balls.

Second ball... short of length from Fazalhaq.... AND BREVIS GOES BIG!!! Pull shot off the front foot and 97m six.

Ninety Seven Meters.

Welll, South Africa have decisions to make... and they are going with the experience of Miller and the explosive strength of Brevis. Interesting choices, Miller presumably because of the LHB option and death overs striking experience because otherwise you'd think Rickelton would have been the choice.

Right then. Farooqi to Miller to start off. Hitting towards the shorter side on the leg side Steyn confirms on air.

Another slower ball, this time wide outside off stump. Azmat frees his arms and slams it in the air over point on the offside. Rabada flings himself to his left... and looks like he might have prevented a six there. The ball does roll into the fence for a four. Signalled four after a few replays. He has actually done really well there.

LAST BALL: Great yorker from Ngidi and it is just a single. (Really poor cricket to not keep running there...)

On replays, that is actually ridiculously poor running from Fazalhaq, was ball watching at the start after Noor played the short, was slow to turn and then didn't put in a dive at the end. Any one of those could have won the match for Afghanistan.

IS THIS A TIE?! DO WE HAVE A RUN OUT! Noor hits the ball wide of long off, and he has taken off. But Fazalhooq is a bit slow to complete his second, Jansen's throw is wide actually but Rabada gathers the ball and dives to his left to catch Fazalhaq short by the smallest of margins.

Screengrab: JioHotstar

NOOR AHMAD HITS A SIX! WOW. A wide, then the free hit is a dot ball as the ball goes to Jansen at long off.

19.2: Rabada bangs one in short, Noor smashes it over square leg for a six.

Noor taps and runs, and Jansen - after getting slightly ahead of Mujeeb - throws down the stumps at the striker's end. Mujeeb is out for a duck, Noor will keep strike at the start of the last over.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman run out Marco Jansen 0 (1 ball)

AND THAT IS PROBABLY THAT! Another brilliant slower ball, another brilliant catch at long on. This time it is Miller time! Runs all the way to his left to take a terrific running catch. Looked like Rashid had gotten just enough bat on it for a four.

Rashid Khan c David Miller b Marco Jansen 20 (12 balls)

STUNNING CATCH BY STUBBS! AND IT IS ANOTHER SLOWER BALL FROM NGIDI THAT DOES THE DAMAGE!

That terrific cutter that Ngidi has perfected, draws the false shot from Omarzai. The ball hits the toe off the bat but it still has enough to nearly go over the fielder at long on. But Stubbs takes a stunning catch at the boundary line, taking the catch and then throwing the ball back into the field to complete it.

Azmatullah Omarzai c Tristan Stubbs b Lungi Ngidi 22 (17 balls)

Linde's over starts with a wicket, and ends up going for 8 runs as Rashid helps himself to a boundary past fine leg.

41 runs off the last four overs is certainly very doable but Afghanistan have lost far too many wickets for their liking.

That's a much-needed over for Afghanistan! Marco Jansen comes back into the attack and Omarzai helps himself to a couple of boundaries. The requried rate is back just below 10 runs again. A gift on the pads, glanced for four. Then off the last ball, Omarzai smashes one over cover for another four.

Well, this is interesting. Nabi is not happy with the hand-bands that Ngidi is wearing, and is asking the umpire for it be taken off. Presumably the light yellow shade of the band is coinciding with the white ball. The umpires initially seemed to disagree but eventually Ngidi has taken it off from the bowling hand.

Screengrab: JioHotstar

END OF A SENSATIONAL INNINGS! Gurbaz falls for a 42-ball 84. Maharaj was hit for a six over long on as Gurbaz moved into the 80s with his 7th six but he falls next ball. Maharaj teases Gurbaz with a loopy delivery outside off stump. Gurbaz looks to go over extra cover but manages to find the fielder at short third, great catch by Linde.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz c George Linde b Keshav Maharaj 84 (42 balls)

Keshav Maharaj has kept things tight at one end, that is another boundary-less over as he restricts Gurbaz and Rasooli to singles.

88 off 9 overs required, under 10 an over.

A tidy over by Maharaj, just five runs from that over. Darwish Rasooli might have to get a move on here, has had his time in the middle, facing 9 balls.

Afghanistan need to steady things here before they can start pushing again. Keshav Maharaj comes into the attack and Darwish and Gurbaz are able to rotate the strike well.

OH DEAR! Afghanistan have fallen apart after a sensational start. In no time, they have lost three wickets and a second player out for a duck. This is a harmless delivery on the pads of the left-handed Sediq Atal, and he can only glance it to Marco Jansen at short fine leg. Another sharp catch, Rabada strikes.

Sediqullah Atal c Jansen b Rabada 0 (3 balls)

Ngidi back into the attack after a sloppy first over and he provides the first breakthrough for South Africa. Terrific slower delivery, Ibrahim comes down the track and completely misses the trajectory of the dipping delivery. Bowled.

Ibrahim Zadran b Lungi Ngidi 12 (10 balls)

UFFF! Another fantastic shot by Gurbaz, this time for a six against Kagiso Rabada. This is also six behind the stumps over third man region but this wasn't even a bouncer. Just short of length but Gurbaz still manages to get underneath it somehow and loft it behind. Rabada bounces back well in the over despite getting hit for six first ball.

HUGE OVER FOR AFGHANISTAN! What a start. Ngidi with a horror start to proceedings. Short and wide first ball, Gurbaz lets it go... bad decision but he'll make up for it. A low full toss is driven past mid off for four next ball. Ngidi then sprays one down the leg side for five wides. And when he banged one in short of good length., Gurbaz picked it up over square leg for four.

Just the start Afghanistan would have hoped for.

A teenager with scattered stubble is flexing his biceps in every frame. He wears a gruff expression. The eyes are cold, but the gaze is piercing. This was Gulbadin Naib in Tim Albone’s documentary ‘Out of the Ashes’, on the rise of Afghanistan cricket. Naib was then an aspiring cricketer, raised in the crammed refugee camps in Peshawar, where he and his family fought for basic needs, but where he also picked up the sport. By then, he had returned to his hometown Puli Alam, in the Logar province, where his father set up a fruit stall.

Sixteen years later, through a career of grit and granite, the bicep-flex image defines him. It is so popular that when he completed his half-century against New Zealand, pulling his side out of a defensive hole, some in the stands rolled up their sleeves and swirled their biceps. In this instance, Naib did not. He raised both his arms towards the dressing room and waved at the applauding crowd. He had flexed his bicep and every possible muscle of his sculpted frame to provide his team a fighting 182/6, which, although, wasn’t enough in the end against New Zealand.

By Sandip G

Lungi Ngidi (South Africa) has a strike rate of 11.1 in men’s T20Is in India, his second highest such rate in any country in the format (England – 10.4); among visiting bowlers to have bowled at least 10 overs in India, only Brydon Carse (10.6) has a better bowling strike rate than Ngidi in men’s T20Is in the country.

Via Opta

HUGE OVER! And just like that, South Africa might have swung the match decisively in their favour. On a pitch where batting doesn't seem to be straightforward, a 17-run 19th over is gold dust. Miller starts the over with a four as a faster ball into the slot is put away. Jansen then hits a cover drive for four followed by a lovely swing of the bat downtown for a straight six. Farooqi is swearing out loud as he walks away from the crease.

And Brevis' stay is brief! Afghanistan's hit-the-pitch-hard with change of pace seems to be working well here. Just outside the offstump, the ball stops on Brevis and he goes for a tennis-style swat down the ground but he is caught at long off. It was almost a wide bouncer.

Dewald Brevis c Mohammad Nabi b Azmatullah Omarzai 23 (19 balls)

Brevis looks to break the shackles, gives himself room and smashes one down the ground between the two deep fielders for a well-struck four. But just that one boundary in that over as Noor comes back well to restrict the batters to singles.

After going for 23 in his first over, it's a good time for Noor to be back into the attack with two new batters in the middle. And he bowls a tight over as Brevis and Miller get their eye in. Getting both set batters out in one over might help Afghanistan shave a few more runs off the potential target.

Time for a drinks break... and then for Rashid to bowl his fourth and final over.

BREAKTHROUGH! And it is the captain who strikes. The partnership is over as QdK goes for a pull shot as he did a few overs back but he doesn't keep this one down and the ball goes flat to the fielder at deep midwicket.

Quinton de Kock c Ibrahim Zadran b Rashid Khan 59 (41 balls)

A 34-ball half century for Quinton de Kock! Gets there with a smashing pull shot off Mujeeb.

And shortly after in the same over, Rickelton sprints to a 23-ball half century with another six, driven over long on.

Afghanistan in deep trouble, as SA reach 111/1 in 11 overs.

A boundary each for QdK and Rickelton in Rashid's second over that is once again expensive. Bit of luck for QdK though, a mishit on drive, Atal should have stopped it at long on, but overruns the ball. Rickelton then hits a reverse sweep for four.

Welcome to the attack, Rashid Khan! After a couple of sighters, QdK goes big down the ground. A delightful lofted off drive for a six. It's a 10-run over from Rashid to start his spell. AFG starting to fall back here.

Omarzai is the new bowler in, the right-arm pacer replacing the left-arm pacer from the same end. He starts off with a nice gentle half volley that Rickelton is able to loft over short cover for a four. Not in control but manages to clear the fielder. Another four for Rickelton off the third ball, through midwicket. It's an expensive start from Omarzai.

Terrific over from Fazalhaq, starts off with a lovely away-shaping delivery to Rickelton off the first ball. AFG have a slip in place too now, and the pacer closes the over with three dot balls. SA pinned back here early on.

QdK doesn't need too many sighters. Mujeeb's spin from the other end, he tosses one up full and De Kock drives through cover for his first boundary. Still just a 7-run over so AFG keeping things relatively tight early on.

Fazalhaq Farooqi will start things off in Ahmedabad, Markram on strike, de Kock at the other end.

Let's play!

Both teams finish their national anthems in Ahmedabad and we are all set for action.

Hugely important for Afghanistan to get their lengths right early on, something that let them down against New Zealand.

Rashid Khan not too focussed on the pitch:

To be honest, no one around the world will tell you how the wicket will behave before the game. Everyone gives their point of views. This is how it's going to be, but sometimes it becomes like 250 wicket. Sometimes it becomes 150 wicket. But I think to put those things in the mind a lot, I think it affects you mentally as well. Nowadays, I think what I'm hearing a lot is the discussion about the wicket in the ground, wicket in the ground. I think we don't really discuss about the skills what we have. And we bring that skills into the game. And tomorrow is going to be the same. If you're playing on the same wicket same ground there is all the opposition team they played a lot here on this ground as well - they played in 23 World Cup they played IPL most of the players, I think they know the condition here well as well. So it's not just like me myself played a lot and it's going to be favouring us - no I think it's equal for everyone

(Pre-match press conference)

And South Africca also make one change, perhaps showing that they too expect more help for spinners. George Linde comes in for Corbin Bosch.

RASHID KHAN WINS THE TOSS.

Afghanistan opt to bowl first... there was a hesitation in his voice, perhaps because he had to think twice. Afghanistan generally like to bat first and defend. But needs must. Wicket gets better later on, he says.

The curious case of Noor Ahmad:

AFG coach Jonathan Trott: "I know Noor has got experience playing here, but these are new wickets, so it's not like he would have bowled on them before. There is that, but yes, you always think whenever you lose, you wish you could have done things a little bit differently, don't you?"

But interestingly, it was only the Chepauk outfield that was relaid recently, not the pitches. Anyway, Noor will be expected to feature today in Ahmedabad in what is a must-win match for AFG.