The Proteas have beaten Afghanistan by 37 runs in a ICC World Twenty20 encounter at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

As it happened: Proteas v Afghanistan - ICC World Twenty20

The Proteas bowling attack were once again put under immense pressure in the powerplay overs with Afghanistan opener Mohammad Shahzad in a brutal mood.

He scored a quickfire 44 of just 19 deliveries, taking 22 runs of the second over of the innings bowled by Kyle Abbott.

He fell to the impressive Chris Morris although the Afghanistan batsman kept rollicking along at the required run-rate of around 10 per over.

Regular wickets however, meant they eventually fell behind the required rate with Imran Tahir's middle over spell of critical importance to the Proteas.

The leg-spinner ended with 2/24 in his 4 overs while Morris ended with 4/27 in his allotted spell.

Earlier, a lightning fast 64 by AB de Villiers was the driving force behind the Proteas innings.

He received able support from Quinton de Kock (45), Faf du Plessis (41) and JP Duminy (29*).

Scores

• South Africa 209/5 after 20 overs
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• De Villiers 64 (29 balls, 4x4, 5x6)
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• De Kock 45 (31 balls, 6x4, 2x6)
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• Du Plessis 41 (27 balls, 7x4, 1x6)
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• Duminy 29* (20 balls, 2x4, 1x6)
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• Hamza 1/25 in 3 overs
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• Afghanistan 172 all out after 20 overs
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• Shahzad 44 (19 balls, 3x4, 5x6)
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• Naib 26 (18 balls, 3x4, 1x6)
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• Zadran 25 (24 balls, 1x4, 1x6)
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• Morris 4/27 in 4 overs
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• Tahir 2/24 in 4 overs

Source : Sport24