Bangladesh were unable to defend 244 in Sharjah

Before Monday, Rahmanullah Gurbaz averaged just 16.73 in 20 ODI run chases, but he broke that trend by scoring 101 against Bangladesh in Sharjah. His second century batting second, with 42 runs coming in sixes, led Afghanistan to successfully chase 245 and secure a third consecutive series win.

This marked the first successful chase in the series, after defenses of 235 and 252 in previous games. Afghanistan faced challenges, though; when Gurbaz fell in the 39th over, followed by Gulbadin Naib in the 41st, Bangladesh saw an opening. With 57 runs needed from 58 balls and five wickets remaining, Azmatullah Omarzai stepped up, scoring an unbeaten 70 off 77 balls, supported by Mohammad Nabi’s quick 34*. Omarzai’s fifth six sealed Afghanistan’s five-wicket win. The chase was built on Gurbaz’s eighth ODI hundred and his 100-run fourth-wicket partnership with Omarzai after Afghanistan had slumped to 84 for 3.