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Afghanistan chased down Ireland's 299-run target with six wickets in hand in the fifth and final ODI at Stormont, sealing a dominant 4-0 series victory.
Rahmat Shah led the chase with an unbeaten 143, while Sediqullah Atal scored 98 as the duo put on a record 201-run partnership for the third wicket. Their stand helped Afghanistan recover from 22/2 and register their highest successful ODI chase. Ireland, after being put into bat, posted 298/7, with Curtis Campher top-scoring with a fighting 96 off 84 balls. Harry Tector also contributed with a half-century, while George Dockrell and Jordan Neill added useful runs late in the innings. Afghanistan's bowlers had initially kept Ireland under pressure, with Azmatullah Omarzai dismissing Andy Balbirnie and Paul Stirling in quick succession. AM Ghazanfar then removed Curtis Carmichael and Lorcan Tucker to leave Ireland struggling in the middle overs. Campher, however, changed the momentum with a late assault, hitting seven fours and four sixes. He added crucial partnerships with Dockrell and Neill to help Ireland post a competitive total. Afghanistan's chase got off to a poor start as Liam McCarthy dismissed both openers, leaving the visitors at 22/2. Rahmat and Atal then steadied the innings, carefully building the partnership before accelerating in the middle overs. The pair added 201 runs from 210 balls, surpassing Afghanistan's previous highest third-wicket partnership of 184 between Rahmat and Hashmatullah Shahidi against Ireland in Abu Dhabi in 2021. Atal fell for 98, but Rahmat continued to anchor the innings. He reached his century off 109 balls and went on to register his highest ODI score of 143, hitting 13 fours and two sixes. Azmatullah Omarzai then provided the finishing touch with a quick 24 off 14 balls before Rahmat sealed the victory with a boundary in the 49th over. The result extended Afghanistan's dominance over Ireland in the series, with the visitors winning four of the five completed matches after the opening ODI was washed out. (ANI)
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