Mumbai Indians will be highly pleased with the consistent performances of their new recruit Allah Ghazanfar. The Afghanistan spin prodigy has joined an elite list of players after taking his second five-wicket haul in ODIs.
Ghazanfar took a fifer in Afghanistan's third ODI of the series against Zimbabwe as he bagged figures of 5/33 in his 10 overs. The 18-year-old prodigy has joined an elite list of players to take multiple five-wicket hauls in ODI cricket in their teenage.
This was the second time that the Afghanistan off-spinner has taken a fifer in the format with his previous achievement coming during an ODI against Bangladesh last month. The youngster had then taken 6/26 in 6.3 overs in an ODI against Bangladesh in Sharjah. That feat had made him the fifth youngest player to take a fifer in the format.
His second fifer makes him join an elite list of players who have picked up multiple fifers in ODIs. Waqar Younis had picked five fifers in his teenage days, while Rashid Khan also had two fifers before turning 20.
Ghazanfar was picked by Mumbai Indians for Rs 4.8 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction.
Coming to the match, Ghazanfar took out the Zimbabwe top-order before returning to take wickets in the lower-middle order. He dismissed opener Joylord Gumbie in the seventh over before Azmatullah Omarzai got Ben Curran in the next over. The offspinner Ghazanfar dismissed Ben Curran in the ninth over as he trapped him in front for an LBW.
While Rashid did the damage in the middle overs, Ghazanfar then took three more to get to his fifer. He dismissed wicketkeeper batter Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza and Newman Nyamhuri to help Afghanistan bowl Zimbabwe out for just 127.
The visitors chased down the target with pretty ease. Sediqullah Atal's fifty and contributions from Abdul Malik, Rahmat Shah and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi took the Afghans home to win the ODI series 2-0.
The first match washed out due to rain and the visitors then clinched both the remaining games. They had also clinched the T20I series 2-1.
