Afghanistan clinch T20 series against WI

Afghanistan beat West Indies by 29 runs on Sunday to win the T20 international series 2-1 in Lucknow, India.

After being swept in the ODI series 3-0, the hosts looked to be in trouble after losing the first T20; but the Afghans took advantage of a shaky Windies batting lineup to bounce back and claim the next two to seal the three-match contest.

Batting first again after winning the toss, Afganistan were led by a brisk 79 off 52 balls from opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz, including six fours and five sixes, posting a challenging 156/8 in their 20 overs.

Windies struggled to chase 148 for victory on Saturday in the second T20 and 157 proved beyond Kieron Pollard's men.

Despite a knock of 52 (46 balls) from Shai Hope and a sedate 24 from 23 balls from opener Evin Lewis, the tourists crumbled under scoreboard pressure and limped to 127/7 when overs ran out. Leg-spinner Rashid Khan was almost unplayable with a frugal 1/18 from four overs while pacer Naveen-ul-Haq took 3/24.

Windies end their tour against Afghanistan with one Test starting on November 26. They play a warm-up match on November 19.