Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard: AFG 129/6, JPN 81

Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard: Latest News About Afghanistan National Cricket Team vs Japan National Cricket Team Match Scorecard

The Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard from the Asian Games 2026 opener shows a match that changed dramatically after the halfway stage. Afghanistan could manage only 129/6 from their 20 overs, but their bowlers turned a competitive total into a convincing 48-run victory by dismissing Japan for 81.

Mohammad Akram top-scored for Afghanistan with 34, captain Darwish Rasooli made 29 and Mohammad Ishaq provided a valuable late push with an unbeaten 25. Japan had kept themselves in the contest with the ball, but Arab Gul Momand’s remarkable 4/8 destroyed the chase after the hosts had initially threatened to make the game competitive.

This page covers the complete Afghanistan National Cricket Team vs Japan National Cricket Team Match Scorecard, including batting figures, bowling figures, fall of wickets, partnerships and the key moments that decided the match.

For the wider history between these two teams, readers can also see our Afghanistan vs Japan cricket overview.

Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard – Match Summary

The first Group A match of the men’s Asian Games cricket competition was played at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Japan, on September 24. Japan captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming won the toss and chose to bowl first.

That decision initially worked reasonably well. Japan restricted Afghanistan to 129/6, but a target of 130 became much more difficult once Afghanistan’s bowlers began taking wickets regularly.

The result gave Afghanistan a winning start to their Asian Games campaign. Japan, meanwhile, showed enough with the ball to keep Afghanistan under pressure before their batting collapse decided the contest.

Afghanistan Batting Scorecard – 129/6

Afghanistan’s innings never developed into a huge total. They scored at 6.45 runs per over, with Japan taking wickets often enough to prevent a prolonged acceleration through the middle of the innings.

Mohammad Akram’s 34 was the highest individual score. Rasooli and Ishaq then made important contributions later in the innings to push Afghanistan towards 130.

Abdullah Ahmadzai, Faridoon Dawoodzai, Nangeyalia Kharote and Arab Gul did not need to bat. The innings contained useful contributions rather than one dominant individual knock.

Mohammad Akram Gives Afghanistan the Foundation

Afghanistan lost Hassan Eisakhil for only three, leaving them 14/1 in the fourth over. Mohammad Akram responded by taking responsibility at the other end rather than allowing Japan to control the innings completely.

Akram made 34 from 29 balls, hitting two fours and two sixes. His partnerships with Karim Janat and Darwish Rasooli helped Afghanistan move through the difficult middle phase before he was stumped off Benjamin Ito-Davis.

The Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard becomes more interesting when viewed through that context. Afghanistan did not have a fifty-plus individual innings, yet several batters contributed enough to construct a defendable total.

Darwish Rasooli and Mohammad Ishaq Finish the Job

At 79/4 after Najibullah Zadran’s dismissal, Afghanistan were still in danger of finishing well below 120. Captain Darwish Rasooli and Mohammad Ishaq then produced the most important partnership of the late innings.

The pair added 44 from 25 balls. Rasooli contributed 24 from 16 balls to that stand, while Ishaq added 17 from nine, giving Afghanistan the acceleration they had been missing.

Rasooli eventually departed for 29 from 27, but Ishaq remained unbeaten on 25 from 17 balls. His strike rate of 147.06 was the best among Afghanistan batters who faced more than three deliveries.

Japan Bowling Scorecard

Japan’s bowling performance was one of the positives they could take from the game. Seven bowlers were used, and four of them picked up at least one wicket.

Ibrahim Takahashi and Shoma Sugaya-Slater claimed two wickets each. Reo Sakurano-Thomas was particularly economical in his short spell, conceding only six runs from two overs.

Takahashi’s 2/19 from four overs was especially useful because he removed both Karim Janat and Najibullah Zadran. Sugaya-Slater then struck twice in the final over to ensure Afghanistan did not finish with a much bigger total.

For player roles and squad details rather than match figures, the separate Afghanistan National Cricket Team vs Japan National Cricket Team Players page should remain the dedicated player-intent article.

Afghanistan Fall of Wickets

The fall-of-wickets sequence explains why Afghanistan were never able to completely break away with the bat. Japan kept taking wickets whenever a partnership looked capable of changing the tempo.

Afghanistan’s strongest late recovery came after the fourth wicket. Rasooli and Ishaq’s partnership took the total from 79 to 123 and gave the bowlers enough runs to attack with.

Japan Chase 130 – Early Wicket Changes the Start

Japan needed 130 runs to win, a target that looked achievable after their disciplined bowling effort. But Afghanistan struck almost immediately.

Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake was dismissed for a duck in the opening over by Abdullah Ahmadzai. Reo Sakurano-Thomas and captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming then steadied the chase, taking Japan to 31 before the second wicket fell.

Japan were still very much in the contest at that point. The problem came when Afghanistan began taking wickets in clusters rather than allowing another substantial partnership to develop.

Japan Batting Scorecard – 81 All Out

Reo Sakurano-Thomas top-scored with 23 from 24 balls, while Benjamin Ito-Davis produced the most aggressive innings with 17 from only eight deliveries.

Captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming made 14, but no other Japan batter reached double figures. Afghanistan eventually bowled the hosts out for 81 in 19.3 overs.

Japan’s innings included only three double-digit individual scores. That made it almost impossible to sustain a chase once Afghanistan’s spinners began controlling the middle overs.

Benjamin Ito-Davis Briefly Changes the Tempo

At 31/2, Japan needed someone to prevent the required rate from climbing. Benjamin Ito-Davis did exactly that for a short period.

He scored 17 from eight balls, striking two fours and a six. His strike rate of 212.50 was comfortably Japan’s highest of the innings, and his attack briefly put pressure back on Afghanistan.

But Nangeyalia Kharote dismissed him at 53/3. That wicket proved important because Japan lost their momentum almost immediately afterwards.

Arab Gul’s 4/8 Destroys Japan’s Middle Order

The decisive performance in the Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard belongs to Arab Gul Momand. His final figures were extraordinary: 4 overs, 2 maidens, 8 runs and 4 wickets.

Arab Gul dismissed Reo Sakurano-Thomas, Ibrahim Takahashi, Charlie Hara-Hinze and Declan Suzuki-McComb. Cricbuzz reported that he bowled 19 dot balls during the spell and delivered two double-wicket maidens as Japan’s innings collapsed.

That is the phase that transformed the match. Japan had reached 53/3, but soon found themselves 63/8, effectively ending the chase before the final overs.

Afghanistan Bowling Scorecard

Afghanistan’s attack shared the wickets effectively, although Arab Gul was clearly the standout. Nangeyalia Kharote took three wickets and Abdullah Ahmadzai added two.

Najibullah Zadran also contributed with the ball, dismissing wicketkeeper Alexander Shirai-Patmore.

Those figures explain the size of Afghanistan’s victory better than the first-innings total alone. Three bowlers combined for nine wickets while conceding only 40 runs between them.

Readers looking specifically for record comparisons rather than one-match figures can use our Afghanistan National Cricket Team vs Japan National Cricket Team Stats page, keeping the The Afghanistan National Cricket Team vs Japan National Cricket Team Players stats and scorecard search intents separate.

Japan Fall of Wickets

The Japan vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard shows two very different stages of the chase. Japan recovered from an immediate wicket to reach 53/3, but the next five wickets cost only ten runs.

The collapse from 53/3 to 63/8 was the decisive sequence. Japan lost five wickets for ten runs, with Arab Gul at the centre of the damage.

Key Partnerships in Afghanistan vs Japan

Afghanistan did not produce one huge partnership, but two stands proved particularly valuable. Mohammad Akram and Karim Janat added 38, while Rasooli and Ishaq later added 44 from only 25 deliveries.

Japan’s strongest partnership came between Reo Sakurano-Thomas and Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming. Their 31-run stand repaired some of the damage after the first-over wicket, but Afghanistan broke it before Japan could establish control.

The contrast is important. Afghanistan managed to rebuild more than once, whereas Japan’s partnerships became progressively smaller once the wickets started falling.

Three Numbers That Decided Afghanistan vs Japan

The first is 129/6. Afghanistan’s total did not look overwhelming, but it was enough to let their bowlers attack rather than defend cautiously.

The second is 53/3 to 63/8. Japan lost five wickets for ten runs during the phase that effectively decided the match.

The third is 4/8. Arab Gul’s spell was the clearest individual difference between the teams and turned a potentially competitive chase into a 48-run Afghanistan victory.

Why 129 Was Enough for Afghanistan

Looking only at the first innings, Japan had reasons to feel positive. They had prevented Afghanistan from reaching 150 and had taken six wickets despite facing a Full Member side.

But Afghanistan’s attack made 129 look much larger. Japan scored at only 4.15 runs per over and were bowled out with three balls remaining.

Afghanistan’s ability to keep taking wickets was more important than simply controlling the run rate. Once Japan reached eight wickets down at 63, the result became extremely difficult to reverse.

What the Afghanistan National Cricket Team vs Japan National Cricket Team Match Scorecard Shows

This scorecard is not simply a record of a 48-run win. It shows that Japan were competitive for a meaningful portion of the match.

Their bowlers restricted Afghanistan to 129/6, and at 53/3 in the chase they had not yet been completely removed from the contest. What separated the teams was Afghanistan’s ability to turn a small opening into a full batting collapse.

That is useful context when comparing these teams. Afghanistan’s greater bowling depth allowed them to win comfortably despite not producing a dominant batting performance.

The match was also part of Group A alongside Nepal. Our Asian Games Cricket 2026 schedule tracks the remaining fixtures and knockout route; TeamStats’ broader Asian Games Cricket 2026 coverage follows the tournament as it develops.

Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard – Top Performers

Mohammad Akram led Afghanistan’s batting with 34, but the lower-order acceleration from Mohammad Ishaq was nearly as important. His unbeaten 25 from 17 balls helped Afghanistan turn a modest position into 129/6.

Japan’s strongest batting contribution came from Reo Sakurano-Thomas with 23, while Ito-Davis supplied 17 from eight balls. With the ball, Ibrahim Takahashi took 2/19 and Sugaya-Slater returned 2/18.

Arab Gul, however, produced the performance that defined the contest. His four wickets for eight runs, including two maidens, broke Japan’s middle order and left Afghanistan firmly in control.

Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard FAQs

What was the Afghanistan vs Japan score?

Afghanistan scored 129/6 from 20 overs. Japan were then bowled out for 81 in 19.3 overs, giving Afghanistan a 48-run victory.

Who won Afghanistan vs Japan?

Afghanistan defeated Japan by 48 runs in their opening Group A match at the Asian Games 2026.

Who scored the most runs for Afghanistan?

Mohammad Akram top-scored with 34 from 29 balls. Darwish Rasooli scored 29 and Mohammad Ishaq finished unbeaten on 25.

Who scored the most runs for Japan?

Reo Sakurano-Thomas was Japan’s highest scorer with 23 from 24 balls. Benjamin Ito-Davis made 17 from eight balls and captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming scored 14.

Who took the most wickets in Afghanistan vs Japan?

Arab Gul Momand took 4/8 from four overs, including two maidens. Nangeyalia Kharote took 3/19 and Abdullah Ahmadzai finished with 2/13.

Who won the toss in Afghanistan vs Japan?

Japan won the toss and elected to bowl first at Korogi Sports Park.

Where was Afghanistan vs Japan played?

The match was played at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Japan, on September 24, 2026.

What was the Japan vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard result?

The reverse-order Japan vs Afghanistan Match Scorecard records Japan at 81 all out after Afghanistan posted 129/6. Afghanistan therefore won by 48 runs.

Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard: Final Match Story

The Afghanistan vs Japan Match Scorecard ultimately tells a bowling story. Afghanistan did enough with the bat to reach 129/6, with Mohammad Akram, Darwish Rasooli and Mohammad Ishaq providing the most important contributions.

Japan’s bowlers had created an opportunity, and Reo Sakurano-Thomas, Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming and Benjamin Ito-Davis kept the chase alive early. But the innings changed completely once Afghanistan began attacking the middle order.

Arab Gul’s 4/8, supported by Nangeyalia Kharote’s 3/19 and Abdullah Ahmadzai’s 2/13, reduced Japan to 81 all out. Afghanistan walked away with a 48-run victory and a strong start to their Asian Games campaign.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rajani Kant

Cricket Writer & Editor at TeamStats.in

Rajani Kant is a cricket writer and editor at TeamStats.in, covering cricket statistics, team records, player performances, match results and important developments from international cricket. His focus is on presenting cricket information in a clear, useful and easy-to-understand format.

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