INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Insanullah Janat's 65 contributed to Afghanistan's match-clinching partnershipTest match, Rajiv Gandhi Stadium, Dehradun (day four of
five)Ireland 172 (60 overs): Murtagh 54*, Dockrell 39; Nabi 3-36, Ahmadzai 3-41 288 (93 overs) Balbirnie 82, O'Brien 56, Rashid 5-82,
Ahmadzai 3-52Afghanistan: 314 (106.3 overs): Rahmat Shah 98, Afghan 67, Shahidi 61; Thompson 3-28 149-3 (47.5 overs) Shah 76, Janat
65Afghanistan win by seven wicketsScorecardAfghanistan earned their first Test win after Rahmat Shah's 76 and Ihsanullah Janat's 65 helped
them earn a seven-wicket victory over Ireland.Starting day four on 29-1 chasing 147 for victory, the duo's 139-run partnership ended any
hopes of an unlikely Ireland fightback in Dehradun.After hitting 98 in Afghanistan's first innings, Shah was out for 76 just three short of
the victory target.Mohammad Nabi quickly departed but the Afghans were not to be denied.'Historic day for Afghanistan'Hashmatullah Shahidi
smashed the winning boundary to trigger celebrations in the Afghanistan dressing room."It's a historic day for Afghanistan, for our team and
our people," said the winning captain Asghar Afghan, who made 67 in the first innings
"We have been playing for a while, we have been playing first-class cricket, so we have that composure
"The bowlers were very good, Rashid (Khan), Yamin (Ahmadzai)
Now we're going to South Africa for World Cup preparation
We will try our best to play good cricket."Ireland captain William Porterfield admitted his side were left chasing the game after a poor
first inningsIreland 'outplayed' admits PorterfieldIreland were on the back foot from the opening day when they were they were bowled out
for 172 at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium.Afghanistan responded with a total of 314 to secure a 144-run first-innings lead and despite Ireland's
improved second-innings total of 288, helped by Andrew Balbirnie's 82, the Afghans were still in a strong position going into the
penultimate day.Ireland captain and opener William Porterfield, who managed only nine runs in the contest, admitted that the Afghans
"outplayed us"."We had to capitalise in the first innings
If we'd done how we'd done in the second innings, it could have been a completely different game
But credit to Afghanistan."Both Ireland and Afghanistan were playing their second-ever Test since being awarded a full member status in
2017.The Irish side's home debut ended in a five-wicket defeat by Pakistan in a hard-fought contest last May, while Afghanistan succumbed
inside two days against top-ranked India a month later in Bengaluru.Prior to the Test, Afghanistan won a Twenty20 series 3-0 at their
adopted home in Dehradun before Ireland rebounded to earn a 2-2 draw in a one-day series.
