Afghanistan defeated West Indies 2–1 in the T20I series played in Dubai in January 2026, winning the first two matches by 38 and 39 runs before West Indies secured a consolation win by 15 runs in the third match. This west indies cricket team vs afghanistan national cricket team match scorecard page covers all three match results, complete batting and bowling figures, hat-trick details, and T20 World Cup 2026 implications.
What made this series extraordinary was not just the result. Two hat-tricks Mujeeb Ur Rahman in Match 2 and Shamar Springer in Match 3 made this one of the rarest T20I series in recent history. Afghanistan’s system won the series. West Indies produced a moment of brilliance. And the cricket world got a preview of what both teams might do in the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup in India.
Quick Series Result Afghanistan Win 2-1
The complete result of the west indies cricket team vs afghanistan national cricket team match scorecard series is as follows:
| Match | Date | Venue | Winner | Margin |
| 1st T20I | Jan 19, 2026 | Dubai International Stadium | Afghanistan | 38 runs |
| 2nd T20I | Jan 21, 2026 | Dubai International Stadium | Afghanistan | 39 runs |
| 3rd T20I | Jan 22, 2026 | Dubai International Stadium | West Indies | 15 runs |
Key Series Stats at a Glance
| Stat | Player | Match | Figure |
| Top Scorer | Ibrahim Zadran | 1st T20I | 87* |
| Best Innings | Rahmanullah Gurbaz | 3rd T20I | 71 off 58 |
| Best Bowling | Mujeeb Ur Rahman | 2nd T20I | Hat-trick |
| Series Turning Point | Mujeeb’s hat-trick | Match 2 | Clinched series |
| Best Individual Spell | Shamar Springer | 3rd T20I | 4/20 + hat-trick |
| Highest Partnership | Zadran + Rasooli | 1st T20I | 162 runs |
1st T20I Scorecard Afghanistan Won by 38 Runs
Afghanistan won the 1st T20I against West Indies by 38 runs, posting 181/3 and bowling West Indies out for 143/9 at Dubai International Stadium on January 19, 2026.
Quick Scorecard View
Afghanistan: 181/3 (20 overs)
West Indies: 143/9 (20 overs)
Result: Afghanistan won by 38 runs
Toss: Afghanistan won, elected to bat
Player of the Match: Darwish Rasooli
Afghanistan Batting 181/3 (20 Overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR | Status |
| Hazratullah Zazai | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | Out (1st ball) |
| Darwish Rasooli | 84 | 59 | — | — | 142.37 | Out |
| Ibrahim Zadran | 87* | — | — | — | — | Not out |
| Total | 181/3 | 20 ov | Powerplay: 51/2 |
Afghanistan lost their first wicket off the very first ball. Most teams crumble after that kind of start. This Afghan side did not. What followed was the defining moment of the match Ibrahim Zadran and Darwish Rasooli put on 162 runs for the 3rd wicket, completely dismantling the West Indies bowling attack. Rasooli, the Player of the Match, had a clear game plan: absorb early pressure, then accelerate. Zadran provided the anchor and finished unbeaten on 87. Afghanistan’s 181/3 was too steep for a West Indies batting order with no blueprint for UAE conditions.
West Indies Batting 143/9 (20 Overs)
| Batter | Runs | Dismissal |
| Johnson Charles | 27 | |
| Amir Jangoo | — | Out (50/5 at 8.4 ov) |
| Quentin Sampson | 30 | Out (95/6 at 14.2 ov) |
| Matthew Forde | 25 | Out (132/7 at 17.4 ov) |
| Gudakesh Motie | 28 | Out (133/8 at 17.6 ov) |
| Khary Pierre | — | Out (140/9 at 19.3 ov) |
| Total | 143/9 | 20 ov |
Fall of Wickets: 50/5 (8.4), 95/6 (14.2), 132/7 (17.4), 133/8 (17.6), 140/9 (19.3)
Afghanistan Bowling (Match 1)
| Bowler | Overs | Runs | Wickets | Economy |
| Ziaur Rahman Sharifi | — | 36 | 3 | |
| Rashid Khan | 4.0 | 19 | 2 | 4.75 |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | — | 29 | 2 |
West Indies Bowling (Match 1)
What most people miss about this AFG vs WI T20I scorecard: West Indies were not beaten by one spinner. They were undone by three different spin options in the same innings Ziaur Rahman’s career-best 3/36, Rashid’s miserly 2/19, and Mujeeb’s 2/29. By the time West Indies read the pace of the Dubai surface, they were already 40 runs behind the required rate with wickets tumbling.
2nd T20I Scorecard Afghanistan Won by 39 Runs (Series Clinched)
Afghanistan sealed the series 2-0 by defeating West Indies by 39 runs in the 2nd T20I on January 21, 2026. Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s hat-trick was the decisive moment. This is the match that settled the west indies cricket team vs afghanistan national cricket team match scorecard series.
Quick Scorecard View
Afghanistan: 189/4 (20 overs)
West Indies: 150 all out (18.5 overs)
Result: Afghanistan won by 39 runs
Toss: West Indies won, elected to bowl
Afghanistan Batting 189/4 (20 Overs)
| Batter | Runs | Highlights |
| Darwish Rasooli | 50+ | Second consecutive fifty |
| Sediqullah Atal | 50+ | First major contribution of the series |
| Total | 189/4 | Powerplay: 54/2 (6 ov) |
Rasooli carried his form directly from Match 1 into Match 2. Sediqullah Atal, quiet in the opener, stepped up when it mattered most. Their twin fifties gave Afghanistan a total of 189/4 a highly competitive score on a slow Dubai surface. This was not luck it was a top-order that had become functionally consistent across back-to-back matches.
West Indies Batting 150 All Out (18.5 Overs)
| Phase | Runs/Status |
| Powerplay (0.1–6.0 ov) | 29/1 |
| 50 reached | 9.3 overs (57 balls) |
| Brandon King | 50 off 40 balls (2 fours, 4 sixes) |
| Total | 150 all out (18.5 ov) |
Brandon King scored 50 off 40 and genuinely threatened the chase. West Indies were in the contest at the halfway point. Then came Mujeeb.
Mujeeb’s Hat-Trick The Defining Moment of the Series
Mujeeb Ur Rahman took a hat-trick deep in the West Indies innings to dismantle the chase and bowl them out for 150. The margin was 39 runs. Afghanistan had won the series 2-0 before the third match was bowled.
Here is the real problem West Indies face: they were not beaten by one individual they were beaten by a system. Afghanistan’s bowling unit targeted stumps, used drift and deceptive variations, and never allowed a free hit to go unpunished. Mujeeb’s hat-trick was the punctuation mark on a sentence Afghanistan had been writing across both innings.
Afghanistan Bowling (Match 2)
| Bowler | Key Stat |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | Hat-trick in 18.5 overs |
| Rashid Khan | Miserly spell, tight lines |
3rd T20I Scorecard West Indies Won by 15 Runs
West Indies won the 3rd T20I by 15 runs on January 22, 2026, denying Afghanistan a 3-0 series sweep. Shamar Springer’s hat-trick in the 19th over was the turning point that killed Afghanistan’s chase. This is the final entry in the AFG vs WI match scorecard series for the UAE 2026 tour.
Quick Scorecard View
West Indies: 151/7 (20 overs)
Afghanistan: 136/8 (20 overs)
Result: West Indies won by 15 runs
Toss: Afghanistan won, elected to field
West Indies Batting 151/7 (20 Overs)
Fall of Wickets: 27/1, 62/2, 85/3, 102/4, 103/5, 122/6, 147/7
Freed from series pressure, West Indies played with a different energy. Brandon King anchored the innings with a composed 47 off 35 balls. The key tactical change: West Indies rotated fringe players KU Carty and JP Greaves giving them T20 World Cup preparation time even in a dead rubber. That is the kind of progressive thinking that separates well-managed squads from average ones.cricbuzz+1
Afghanistan Bowling (Match 3)
| Bowler | Overs | Runs | Wkts | Economy |
| Rashid Khan | 4.0 | 13 | 2 | 3.25 |
| Abdollah Ahmadzai | 4.0 | 30 | 2 | 7.50 |
| Ziaur Rahman | 4.0 | 45 | 2 | 11.25 |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | 4.0 | 22 | 0 | 5.50 |
| Shahidullah | 1.0 | 13 | 1 | 13.00 |
| Mohammad Nabi | 2.0 | 18 | 0 | 9.00 |
Rashid Khan’s 2/13 in 4 overs (economy: 3.25) was the most economical spell of the match, but West Indies still managed 151/7 a total their bowlers ultimately defended.
Afghanistan Batting 136/8 (20 Overs)
| Batter | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR | Dismissal |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | 71 | 58 | 8 | 3 | 122.41 | Caught Springer HT Ball 1 |
| Ibrahim Zadran | 28 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 103.70 | Caught |
| Sediqullah Atal | 7 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 63.63 | Caught wk |
| Darwish Rasooli | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | Caught |
| Mohammad Nabi | 6 | 4 | — | — | — | Caught |
| Gulbadin Naib | 7* | 9 | — | — | 77.77 | Not out |
| Rashid Khan | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Caught Springer HT Ball 2 |
| Shahidullah | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Bowled Springer HT Ball 3 |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | 4 | 3 | — | — | — | Run out |
| Total | 136/8 | 20 ov |
Opening Partnership (Gurbaz + Zadran): 72 runs off 10.1 overs | Afghanistan Powerplay: 45/0 (6 ov)
West Indies Bowling (Match 3)
| Bowler | Overs | Runs | Wkts | Economy |
| SK Springer | 4.0 | 20 | 4 | 5.00 |
| G Motie | 4.0 | 17 | 0 | 4.25 |
| RR Simmonds | 4.0 | 26 | 1 | 6.50 |
| K Pierre | 4.0 | 29 | 1 | 7.25 |
| MW Forde | 3.0 | 28 | 1 | 9.33 |
| JP Greaves | 1.0 | 14 | 0 | 14.00 |
Gurbaz’s 71 The Chase That Almost Was
Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored 71 off 58 balls (8 fours, 3 sixes) in the 3rd T20I and carried Afghanistan’s chase single-handedly. He reached his fifty in 44 balls and the opening stand with Zadran produced 72 runs off 10.1 overs. For long stretches, a 3-0 sweep felt entirely possible for Afghanistan.
This is where the story turns counterintuitive. Afghanistan a team celebrated for its spin bowling nearly won the match through pure batting grit from their wicketkeeper-batter. Gurbaz’s innings revealed one critical truth about Afghanistan: when he fires, they can chase anything. Without him, their middle order has a real fragility at the death. That is not a weakness to ignore heading into a T20 World Cup.
Springer’s Hat-Trick Three Balls That Killed the Chase
Shamar Springer took a hat-trick in the 19th over (over 18 of the innings), dismissing three consecutive Afghanistan batters to seal West Indies’ 15-run win.espncricinfo+1
- Ball 18.1: Gurbaz caught at deep square leg for 71 mistimed a pull, found Forde at the boundary
- Ball 18.2: Rashid Khan caught at deep backward point for 0
- Ball 18.3: Shahidullah bowled for 0 full, rockets into the off stump
Score moved from 127/5 to 127/8 in three deliveries. The chase was over. Afghanistan were bowled out for 136 15 short. Springer became the third West Indian bowler to take a T20I hat-trick. It was the single explosive act of individual brilliance that West Indies had been missing across the first two matches.
Key Player Performances Full Series
Here is the complete player performance summary across the AFG vs WI T20I series 2026:espncricinfo+3
| Player | Team | Best Performance | Series Impact |
| Darwish Rasooli | Afghanistan | 84 off 59 (Match 1, PoM) + 50+ (Match 2) | Most consistent batter of the series |
| Ibrahim Zadran | Afghanistan | 87* (Match 1) + 28 (Match 3) | Scored in all three matches |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | Afghanistan | 71 off 58 (Match 3) | Best batting innings of the series |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | Afghanistan | Hat-trick (Match 2) | Series-defining spell |
| Rashid Khan | Afghanistan | 2/19 (Match 1), 2/13 (Match 3) | Tactical captaincy throughout |
| Shamar Springer | West Indies | 4/20 + hat-trick (Match 3) | Best individual bowling performance |
| Ziaur Rahman Sharifi | Afghanistan | Career-best 3/36 (Match 1) | Unlocked the innings |
| Brandon King | West Indies | 47 (Match 3) + steady contributions | West Indies’ best batter across the series |
Tactical Breakdown Why Afghanistan Won the Series
Afghanistan won the west indies cricket team vs afghanistan national cricket team match scorecard series because they had superior batting consistency, intelligent bowling rotation, and perfect exploitation of Dubai pitch conditions. This was not just spin it was a complete team system.
Afghanistan’s Batting Advantage
Rasooli, Zadran, and Gurbaz all scored runs in every match they had meaningful opportunities. West Indies never built a single partnership of equivalent impact. The 162-run stand between Rasooli and Zadran in Match 1 was the highest partnership of the entire series. Afghanistan’s depth was no longer theoretical it was verified across three consecutive matches.
Rashid Khan’s Bowling Rotation
Rashid Khan used pace in the powerplay (Ahmadzai, Sharifi) to dry up runs, then deployed spin in the middle overs once West Indies batters were already settled but unsettled by conditions. This bowling sequencing left the West Indies unable to build momentum at any phase of their innings. Rashid’s own economy of 3.25 in Match 3 illustrates how tight he kept things when it mattered.
West Indies’ Spin Fragility
West Indies’ approach against spin was reactive, not proactive. They attempted sweeps and slog-sweeps without adequate preparation for slow, low Dubai surfaces. The Dubai pitch offered minimal pace and carry an environment natively hostile to West Indian batters who thrive on pace in the Caribbean. West Indies simply ran out of matches to adapt. One more game in UAE might have changed the series result, but cricket does not offer extra attempts.
T20 World Cup 2026 What This Series Signals
Both teams were using the Afghanistan vs West Indies 2026 T20I series as preparation for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 scheduled in India. The verdict from Dubai was clear.
- Afghanistan’s spin battery Rashid, Mujeeb, Noor Ahmad is functioning at peak capacity heading into the tournament
- Their batting top-four is settled, consistent, and in form a dangerous combination before a World Cup
- West Indies need a concrete plan against quality spin or risk similar collapses against India, Sri Lanka, or Pakistan
- Afghanistan also won the T20 WC 2026 warm-up against West Indies by 23 runs (AFG: 182/6, WI: 159/7) on February 4, 2026 making it four consecutive T20I wins for Afghanistan over West Indies
The warm-up result carries extra weight. Teams sometimes ease off in bilateral series but find their intensity in competitive warm-ups. Afghanistan found theirs in both. That consistency signals a team ready to make a deep tournament run.
Read More About – India Women’s National Cricket Team Vs Sri Lanka Women Match Scorecard ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, Guwahati
Head-to-Head Record West Indies vs Afghanistan in T20Is
| Year | Format | Result |
| 2019 | T20I Series (India) | Afghanistan won 2-1 |
| 2024 | ICC T20 World Cup | West Indies won by 104 runs |
| 2026 | T20I Series (UAE) | Afghanistan won 2-1 |
| 2026 | T20 WC Warm-up | Afghanistan won by 23 runs |
The pattern reveals two distinct truths. West Indies can produce peak-day brilliance their 104-run T20 World Cup win in 2024 proved that. But Afghanistan have now won two separate bilateral T20I series against West Indies, confirming their team system is superior across multiple matches. Bilateral T20Is reward consistency. World Cup cricket rewards one extraordinary day. The 2026 tournament will determine which kind of cricket wins the biggest prize.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. Who won the west indies cricket team vs afghanistan national cricket team match scorecard series in 2026?
Ans. Afghanistan won the T20I series 2-1, winning the 1st T20I by 38 runs and the 2nd T20I by 39 runs. West Indies won the 3rd T20I by 15 runs as a consolation. The series was played in Dubai, UAE, in January 2026.
Q2. What is the full scorecard of the 1st T20I between Afghanistan and West Indies 2026?
Ans. Afghanistan scored 181/3 in 20 overs (Ibrahim Zadran 87 not out, Darwish Rasooli 84). West Indies were bowled out for 143/9 in 20 overs (Sampson 30, Motie 28). Afghanistan won by 38 runs. Rasooli was the Player of the Match.
Q3. What is the full scorecard of the 2nd T20I between Afghanistan and West Indies 2026?
Ans. Afghanistan scored 189/4 in 20 overs (Rasooli 50+, Atal 50+). West Indies were bowled out for 150 in 18.5 overs (King 50). Afghanistan won by 39 runs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman took a hat-trick.
Q4. What is the full scorecard of the 3rd T20I between Afghanistan and West Indies 2026?
Ans. West Indies scored 151/7 in 20 overs (King 47, Charles 27). Afghanistan were bowled out for 136/8 in 20 overs (Gurbaz 71, Zadran 28). West Indies won by 15 runs. Springer took 4/20 including a hat-trick.
Q5. Did Mujeeb Ur Rahman take a hat-trick against West Indies in the AFG vs WI series?
Ans. Yes. Mujeeb Ur Rahman took a hat-trick in the 2nd T20I, dismantling West Indies’ chase and bowling them out for 150. It was the single most decisive bowling performance of the series.
Q6. Did Shamar Springer take a hat-trick in the 3rd T20I?
Ans. Yes. Springer dismissed Gurbaz (caught, 71), Rashid Khan (caught, 0), and Shahidullah (bowled, 0) in three consecutive balls in the 19th over. He became the third West Indian to take a T20I hat-trick.
Q7. What was Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s score in the 3rd T20I?
Ans. Gurbaz scored 71 off 58 balls (8 fours, 3 sixes, SR: 122.41). He was dismissed as Springer’s first hat-trick wicket after nearly winning the chase for Afghanistan.
Q8. Who was the Player of the Match in each game of the AFG vs WI series 2026?
Ans. 1st T20I: Darwish Rasooli (84 off 59, part of 162-run stand). 2nd T20I: Mujeeb Ur Rahman (hat-trick). 3rd T20I: Shamar Springer (4/20 + hat-trick).
Q9. What are the WI vs AFG match results and series outcome for the 2026 UAE tour?
Ans. Afghanistan won the series 2-1. Match 1: AFG won by 38 runs. Match 2: AFG won by 39 runs. Match 3: WI won by 15 runs. All matches were played at Dubai International Stadium in January 2026.
Q10. What does the Afghanistan vs West Indies 2026 series mean for T20 World Cup 2026?
Ans. Afghanistan won four consecutive T20Is against West Indies (including the February 4 warm-up by 23 runs), signaling a settled batting top-four and a peak-performing spin battery heading into the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 in India. West Indies need a structured plan against quality spin before the tournament begins.
