India beat Afghanistan by seven wickets in the first match of the three-game series at the Feroz Shah Kotla (Arun Jaitley Stadium) in Delhi on Sunday, September 13. Afghanistan batted first in this encounter, but their batters flattered to deceive. Losing opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz for a duck to Jasprit Bumrah off the second ball of the innings put the handbrake on the Afghan innings. It got worse by the dismissals of captain Ibrahim Zadran (11) and Sediqullah Atal (13).
No batter in Afghanistan's top five crossed the 20-run mark. That was thanks to all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai's unbeaten 64 that they could reach a score of 156-8. Omarzai received plenty of support from elderly statesman Mohammad Nabi, who contributed 33 off 27 deliveries. Arshdeep Singh was the pick of the Indian bowlers, returning with figures of 3-19 in his four overs. Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy and Axar Patel picked up a wicket apiece.
Walking out to chase the target of 157, India lost opener Sanju Samson (10) with just 18 runs on the board. Yet, fellow opener Abhishek Sharma rode his luck to take the attack to the Afghan bowlers. He ended the powerplay with his team's score at 82-1. Kishan and Sharma built a strong partnership of 121 runs, which ended only in the 11th over when the latter was dismissed for a whirlwind 32-ball 82. Kishan followed him 13 runs later after having amassed a stately 42 off 33 deliveries.
With just five runs needed for victory, Tilak Varma (3 not out) and captain Shreyas Iyer (8 not out) completed the formalities for India. Sharma was undeniably the star for the Men in Blue since his knock consisted of seven sixes and as many boundaries. Rightfully so, he was adjudged the player of the match. With this win, India lead the series 1-0, with the second match scheduled to be played at the same venue on September 15.