Afghanistan captain Rahmat Shah produced a marathon innings of 173 on Day 4 of the first Test against Zimbabwe in Sharjah on Sunday, carrying his side past 500 and into a 10-run first-innings lead after the visitors had piled up 504.
Resuming the day unbeaten on 94, Rahmat did not take long to reach his fifth Test hundred, becoming the third Afghan batter to reach three figures in the innings after debutant Rahmanullah and Sediqullah Atal, who made 105. The skipper then kept going, facing 347 balls in all and hitting 14 fours and three sixes before he was finally dismissed as the ninth batter.
Rahmat had arrived at the crease with Afghanistan well placed at 220 for 2, only for a cluster of wickets to leave them 275 for 5. He rebuilt the innings first with half-century stands alongside Ikram Alikhil, who made 40, and Qais Ahmad, who made 27, and then frustrated Zimbabwe’s bowlers with the tail. His 92-run stand with number nine Zia-ur-Rehman Akbar, who made 15, is the highest for an Afghanistan pair for the eighth wicket or lower in Tests, and it took the home side to the brink of 500.
Afghanistan were eventually bowled out for 514 in 169.4 overs, their third 500-plus total in Test cricket. Their two higher totals also came against Zimbabwe — 699 for 10 in Bulawayo in 2024 and 545 for 4 declared in Abu Dhabi in 2021. Newman Nyamhuri finished with five wickets for Zimbabwe, while Graeme Cremer took three.
The numbers underline just how much Rahmat means to Afghanistan’s Test batting. Playing his 14th Test, he now has 1,372 runs at an average of 54.88, with five hundreds and seven fifties — no other Afghan batter has even 900 runs in Test cricket. Against Zimbabwe, his record is remarkable: 652 runs in eight innings at an average of 81.50, with three hundreds and a fifty. His 173 is his second-highest Test score, behind only his 234 against the same opponents in Bulawayo in 2024, and the fourth-highest by an Afghan batter in Tests. He also passed 3,000 first-class runs during the innings, moving to 3,113.
Zimbabwe began their second innings with a 10-run deficit to erase, and were 14 for 1 at the time of writing after Innocent Kaia fell leg-before to Zia-ur-Rehman for 1, with Ben Curran and Brendan Taylor at the crease. With a day and a bit remaining, the Test is finely balanced — and Rahmat’s epic has given Afghanistan the platform to push for a win.
Brief scores: Zimbabwe 504 (Brian Bennett 128) and 14/1; Afghanistan 514 (Rahmat Shah 173, Sediqullah Atal 105; Newman Nyamhuri 5 wickets). Afghanistan lead by 10 runs on first innings.
Related: Twin Centuries From Atal and Debutant Rahmanullah Drag Afghanistan to 402 for 7 in Sharjah
Related: Atal and Debutant Rahmanullah Lead Afghanistan’s Spirited Reply After Zimbabwe Post 504 in Sharjah
