I said before the match, I'll bat like Tendulkar: Zadran

MUMBAI:

Ibrahim Zadran

is just 21 but he has already carved out an image for himself of a batter with perfect technique, one with every shot in the book and one who is mentally very strong. All that was on display at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday as he scored a well-crafted unbeaten 129 against an Australia attack that was on the ball for majority of the match.

Zadran’s knock was his fifth ODI century, the most important of his career, and one which went a long way in Afghanistan posting 291-5—their highest ever total in the World Cup.
The innings came off 143 balls with the help of eight fours and three sixes. The knock also saw him enter the record books. The Khost-born righthander became the fourth youngest to score an ODI century against Australia besides recording the third-highest score against them in the World Cup. He has now scored 361 runs in eight matches at an average of 51.57.

“Feeling great to score Afghanistan’s maiden hundred in the World Cup. I worked hard for this tournament. I missed a hundred against Pakistan but made it today. I had a good chat with Sachin Tendulkar (on the eve of the match) and he shared his experience and I said (to my teammate) before the match that I will bat like him (today). He gave me a lot of energy and confidence,” Zadran said at the mid-innings break.
Afghanistan needed someone to carry the bat and the rest to play around to help them post a fighting total. They chose Zadran and he didn’t disappoint. It was crucial to see off the initial overs from Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins. His technique saw him weather the storm. His balance helped him to shift his weight easily—on the front foot or the back.

The shifting was aided by his ability to pick up the line and length quickly. Throughout the battle, he kept the scoreboard ticking and was wide awake to put away bad balls.

That he ran 60 singles, showed his ability to manoeuvre the ball to different parts of the field and rotate the strike especially with Aussie close-in fielders always on the move to cut down those singles. Besides the conventional shots— cover drive being his favourite—he also showed that he can be cheeky as well with a ramp for boundary off Cummins at the start of the innings or a flick off Starc’s attempted yorker for a six over long leg.
Zadran was part of the Afghanistan under-19 team that made it to the semifinal of the U-19 World Cup in 2018. As Afghanistan looked to add some fresh legs to their squad, Zadran’s impressive display in the U-19 tourney saw him drafted in the Afghanistan squad for the Bangladesh tour in 2019 where he scored a crucial 87 in the second innings as Afghans went on to win the one-off Test.
Zadran batted for 230 minutes during that knock and never looked back. The pandemic didn’t slow him down and he built up his reputation as a steady ODI batter as well—his four tons between June 2022 to July 2023 vouch for it.
During the World Cup, Zadran also became the fastest Afghanistan batter to score 1000 runs in ODIs — in just 24 innings. With his century against Australia, Zadran has opened a new chapter in his young career which has a potential to blossom into something substantial.