AFG vs ZIM 3rd T20I Match Result: Afghanistan Bowl Zimbabwe Out for 79 to Complete 3-0 Whitewash

Afghanistan have completed a 3-0 series whitewash over Zimbabwe, bowling Zimbabwe out for just 79 and then chasing the target down in only 8.1 overs to win the AFG vs ZIM 3rd T20I at Sharjah Cricket Stadium by 7 wickets. It was the most one-sided match of the series, and it took Afghanistan barely half an evening to finish a job that had already been set up by a ruthless bowling display.

Having already sealed the series with wins by 37 runs on October 27 and 19 runs on October 29, Afghanistan arrived for the finale with the clean sweep on the line. Zimbabwe, playing for pride, were instead bundled out for a desperately low total, and Afghanistan needed only 49 balls to overhaul it. Azmatullah Omarzai finished the match in style, launching Vincent Masekesa over long on for six with 71 balls still remaining.

AFG vs ZIM 3rd T20I match result and full score summary

Team	Score	Overs
Zimbabwe	79 all out	14.3
Afghanistan	81 for 3	8.1

Result: Afghanistan won by 7 wickets (71 balls remaining). Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah. Date: Sunday, November 1, 2026. Toss: Afghanistan won the toss and elected to field. Series: Afghanistan win the three-match T20I series 3-0.

Zimbabwe innings: 79 all out as Noor Ahmad takes five wickets

Zimbabwe’s innings never got going. They lost wickets in clusters from the start, slipped to 13 for 3, and although Ryan Burl held one end for a while, the middle order collapsed around him. By the time Burl was dismissed, Zimbabwe were already deep in trouble, and the last wickets fell in a rush, with the innings closing at 79 in the 15th over.

Zimbabwe batter	Runs	Balls	Fours	Sixes
Ryan Burl	30	29	5	0
Wessly Madhevere	10	17	0	0
Newman Nyamhuri	9	10	1	0
Ernest Masuku	6	5	1	0
Innocent Kaia	5	4	1	0

No other Zimbabwe batter reached double figures, and extras contributed 12 to the total. The fall of wickets tells the story of the collapse: 8 for 1, 8 for 2, 13 for 3, 56 for 4, 59 for 5, 59 for 6, 60 for 7, 72 for 8, 74 for 9 and 79 all out. Burl’s 30 off 29 balls, with five fours, was the only innings of any substance, and even he could not find a partner to stay with him.

The bowling hero was Noor Ahmad, who claimed a maiden five-wicket haul in T20 internationals, finishing with 5 for 13 in 3.3 overs. His spell ripped through the middle and lower order and left Zimbabwe with no way back. Debutant Abdullah Tarakhail also took two wickets, including the prized scalp of Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza, who had tormented Afghanistan with an unbeaten 106 in the second T20I. Fazalhaq Farooqi, Azmatullah Omarzai and Ahmadzai took one wicket each.

Afghanistan chase: 81 for 3 in 8.1 overs

Chasing only 80, Afghanistan never looked in danger, even though Zimbabwe did strike three times. Mohammad Akram set the tone with 14 off just 5 balls, including three fours, before Blessing Muzarabani, playing his 100th T20 international, removed him. Sediqullah Atal then made 20 off 14 balls, with two fours and a six, before Ernest Masuku struck twice in quick succession, dismissing Atal and then Noor ul Rahman for a two-ball duck to leave Afghanistan 44 for 3.

That was as good as it got for Zimbabwe. Ibrahim Zadran and Azmatullah Omarzai, the two unbeaten batters, then took control and finished the job without further alarm. Zadran finished on 25 not out off 17 balls, with four fours, while Omarzai made 18 not out off 12 balls, with two sixes, including the winning hit off Masekesa in the ninth over.

Afghanistan batter	Runs	Balls	Fours	Sixes
Ibrahim Zadran (not out)	25	17	4	0
Sediqullah Atal	20	14	2	1
Azmatullah Omarzai (not out)	18	12	0	2
Mohammad Akram	14	5	3	0
Noor ul Rahman	0	2	0	0

For Zimbabwe with the ball, Ernest Masuku was the pick with 2 for 21 in two overs, while Muzarabani took 1 for 31 in three overs in his milestone match. Newman Nyamhuri went wicketless for 23 in three overs, and Masekesa’s only delivery of the match, the first ball of the ninth over, was hit for the winning six.

Key turning points in the Afghanistan vs Zimbabwe 3rd T20I

• The toss and the new-ball squeeze: Afghanistan won the toss and bowled first, and Zimbabwe were 13 for 3 before they could settle. On a Sharjah surface that offered the bowlers something, that early damage set the tone for the whole evening.
• Noor Ahmad’s five-wicket haul: The left-arm wrist-spinner’s 5 for 13 broke the back of the Zimbabwe innings. Once Burl fell and the middle order was exposed to him, there was no recovery, and Zimbabwe lost their last six wickets for just 23 runs.
• Tarakhail’s debut moment: The debutant, who received his cap from Rashid Khan, dismissed captain Sikandar Raza, removing the one Zimbabwe batter who had looked capable of changing a game on his own in this series.
• Masuku’s double strike, too late: Zimbabwe briefly had hope when Masuku removed Atal and Noor ul Rahman in the same over to make it 44 for 3, but with only 36 runs needed and seven wickets in hand, Afghanistan calmly closed out the chase.
• Omarzai’s winning six: With five runs needed at the start of the ninth over, Omarzai rocked back to a short ball from Masekesa and deposited it over long on, sealing the whitewash with 71 balls to spare.

Player of the Match: Noor Ahmad’s five-for the standout performance

Noor Ahmad’s maiden T20I five-wicket haul, 5 for 13 in 3.3 overs, was unquestionably the defining performance of the match, turning a contest that Zimbabwe needed to win into a rout. At the time of publication, the Player of the Match award had not been officially confirmed in the sources available, so this report does not name an official award winner; on the numbers alone, though, no other performance came close to Noor Ahmad’s spell.

What the AFG vs ZIM 3rd T20I result means for the series

The 3-0 whitewash underlines just how far ahead Afghanistan were in this series, even though the second match, decided by 19 runs, was far closer than this finale. Afghanistan won the series in three very different ways: a comfortable 37-run win in the opener, a record-breaking rescue act built on Omarzai’s 116 in the second game, and now a bowling demolition in the third. That variety is the clearest sign of a side with match-winners in every department.

For Zimbabwe, the series ends in disappointment despite flashes of real quality. Raza’s unbeaten century in the second match and Burl’s fighting 30 here showed the talent in the side, but the batting as a unit never produced a total their bowlers could defend, and in the finale they were bowled out for 79, a total that gave their attack almost nothing to work with. The most worrying pattern for Zimbabwe is the regularity of their collapses: in all three matches, promising positions slipped away in clusters of wickets.

The result also extends Afghanistan’s dominance over Zimbabwe in this rivalry in the shortest format. A clean sweep, sealed with more than half the overs unused in the chase, is the most emphatic statement of the three, and it will give Afghanistan plenty of confidence to take into their next assignments.

Our prediction: right or wrong?

Our prediction was RIGHT: in our AFG vs ZIM 3rd T20I prediction we tipped Afghanistan to win and complete a 3-0 series whitewash, although the low-scoring game that unfolded, with Zimbabwe bowled out for 79, was very different from the high-scoring contest around 190 to 210 that we had expected.

What’s next after the Afghanistan vs Zimbabwe T20I series

With the series done, Afghanistan leave Sharjah with a perfect record from the three-match contest and a bowling attack in excellent rhythm, led by Rashid Khan’s experience and Noor Ahmad’s emergence as a genuine wicket-taking threat. Zimbabwe head home with serious questions about their batting depth and their ability to build partnerships under pressure, even if Raza’s form remains a bright spot.