19-year-old Afghanistan spinner AM Ghazanfar delivered a miserly spell of 2 for 5 off his four overs in Derbyshire's T20 Blast 2025 match against Yorkshire on Sunday (July 13).
Opening the bowling for his side, Ghazanfar claimed his first wicket by dismissing Jonny Bairstow for a duck (off five balls), a stark contrast to his career-best 116 in the previous match. He struck again in the powerplay, removing James Wharton for another duck as Yorkshire slumped to 17-4. He finished with exceptional figures of 2-5 from four overs. Meanwhile, seamer Ben Aitchison picked up his maiden five-wicket haul, though Yorkshire recovered to 151-9 thanks to Dom Bess’ 37-ball 53.
Ghazanfar has been simply outstanding in his first three overs, he has figures of 3-2-2-2!!
— Derbyshire CCC (@DerbyshireCCC) July 13, 2025
Wharton the latest batter to fall, Yorkshire 17-4.
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In response, Derbyshire gunned down the total with ease, fueled by half-centuries from Aneurin Donald (54 off 30) and Wayne Madsen (51 not out off 28). Caleb Jewell also contributed with an unbeaten 41 off 34, guiding them to victory with eight wickets and 20 balls to spare.
Also read: Multiple ODI five-fors before turning 19: Afghanistan's Allah Ghazanfar joins elite list
The defeat ended Yorkshire’s faint hopes of reaching the playoffs, as they slumped to their eighth loss in 12 matches. Only Derbyshire – already eliminated – sit below them in the North Group table, with just four wins from 13 matches.
Ghazanfar’s remarkable figures of 2-5, including two maidens, are now the joint-second-most economical four-over spell in T20 Blast history. He narrowly missed Samit Patel’s record of 3-4 for Nottinghamshire against Worcestershire at Nottingham in 2021. Other bowlers with an identical economy rate (1.25) as Ghazanfar include Somerset’s Alfonso Thomas (against Hampshire, 2010) and Hampshire’s Danny Briggs (against Kent, 2010). Thomas remains the only seamer on this elite list.
In overall T20s, however, the record belongs to four bowlers who completed their full quota without conceding a single run. Among them, New Zealand’s Lockie Ferguson is the only Full Member representative, achieving this against Papua New Guinea at Tarouba during the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Most economical bowling figures in T20 Blast (4-over spells)
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