Sport
England clinches 5-wicket win over Afghanistan in first World Cup match
England’s Sam Curran delivered a memorable bowling performance in the Super 12 encounter of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup against Afghanistan in Perth on Saturday as England bowled out Mohammed Nabi’s men for a meager total of 112.
England chased it down later with five wickets and 11 deliveries to spare.
The England bowlers kept the Afghanistan batters under pressure right from the beginning of the match and restricted the Afghans to less than six runs per over in the powerplay.
But there was still some hope for Mohammad Nabi’s men as they had wickets in hand. However that didn’t matter in the end, as Curran bowled a superb spell to bundle them out for 112.
England got off to a steady start with Alex Hales and Jos Buttler putting on an opening stand of 35 runs. But they suffered a brief scare in the middle as they went on to lose four wickets in the space of just 46 runs. Afghanistan could also sense that they were back in the game.
But Liam Livingstone stepped up and scored an unbeaten 29 from 21 deliveries to guide England home.
This win also gave England a significant boost in their NRR, which stands at +0.620 right now. Afghanistan fought well with the ball but this loss has left them with a NRR of -0.620 and they will need to work really hard to improve it.
Speaking after the match, Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi said: “It’s not the best start to the tournament for us but we tried our best. We didn’t get a good enough total on the board in the first innings and everyone knows England are one of the best T20 teams in the world.
“The pitch was more suitable to them as well but there weren’t enough runs. I still think our boys played really well.
“They took some very good catches out there. We were thinking that something like 150 would be a good score to fight with.
“We do want to bat first and we know we have very good spinners with a lot of experience in Australia.
“We will learn from this game and from our mistakes. Hopefully we can improve on that in the next game,” he said.
International Sports
Ariana News to broadcast key AFC Champions League Two clash
The match will be played in Riyadh, where Al-Nassr will aim to make home advantage count following their strong performances earlier in the campaign.
Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr will take on Iraq’s Al-Zawraa in a crucial AFC Champions League Two group-stage encounter tomorrow, Wednesday December 24, as both sides look to strengthen their positions in the competition.
The match will be played in Riyadh, where Al-Nassr will aim to make home advantage count following their strong performances earlier in the campaign.
With a squad packed with international stars and attacking depth, the Saudi club will be targeting another positive result to move closer to qualification for the knockout stages.
Al-Zawraa, one of Iraq’s most successful clubs, arrive determined to bounce back and keep their continental hopes alive.
Known for their discipline and resilience, the Baghdad-based side will be looking to frustrate the hosts and capitalize on any opportunities on the counterattack.
The encounter is expected to draw significant attention from football fans across the region, as the AFC Champions League Two continues to showcase competitive clashes between leading clubs.
The match will be broadcast across Afghanistan live and exclusively on Ariana News from 8:30pm.
Sport
Afghanistan participates in Global Handball Congress as Asia reaffirms support
At the conclusion of the voting process, Egypt’s Hassan Moustafa was re-elected as President of the International Handball Federation, securing another four-year term.
Afghanistan has participated in the Global Handball Congress held in Cairo, Egypt, with the head of the Afghanistan Handball Federation attending the international gathering alongside representatives from 107 member countries of the International Handball Federation (IHF).
The congress took place from December 19 to 22 and included elections for leadership positions within both the global and Asian handball governing bodies.
At the conclusion of the voting process, Egypt’s Hassan Moustafa was re-elected as President of the International Handball Federation, securing another four-year term.
At the continental level, Badr Mohammed Diyab Saleh Al-Diyab was elected President of the Asian Handball Federation.
Officials from the Afghanistan Handball Federation said that several meetings were held on the sidelines of the congress with senior international handball officials, including the newly elected Asian federation president.
According to the officials, the Asian handball chief reaffirmed continued support for the development and advancement of handball in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan’s participation in the global congress is being viewed as an important step toward strengthening international sports relations, attracting broader institutional support, and promoting the growth of handball in the country—a sport that has faced significant challenges and limitations in recent years.
Sport
Afghanistan and Kuwait draw 4-4 in friendly futsal match
Afghanistan’s national futsal team played a friendly match against Kuwait on Saturday, ending in a 4-4 draw with the hosts.
Afghanistan’s goals came from Sayed Murtaza Hossaini (1), Hamid Reza Hossaini (2), and Omid Qanbari (1). The two teams are set to face each other again on Monday for the second friendly match.
A five-day training camp for the Afghanistan futsal team began on Friday in Kuwait and will run until Tuesday. The camp is designed to prepare the players for a strong showing at the 2026 AFC Futsal Asian Cup.
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