Asia Cup 2022: IND vs AFG- Afghanistan Playing 11 vs India (Predicted), Super 4, Match 5 (A1 vs B2). India will play against Afghanistan on 8th September 2022, 19:30 IST at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai. India lost its first Super 4 match against Pakistan while Afghanistan lost to Sri Lanka in the first Super 4 match. India will play against Sri Lanka next on 6th September 2022 while Afghanistan will play against Pakistan on 7th September 2022.
Sri Lanka pulled off a major upset, beating Afghanistan by 4 wickets in the Super 4 opener. With that, Dasun Shanaka-led Sri Lanka also avenged their humiliating loss in the Asia Cup 2022 opener. Rahmanullah Gurbaz (84) helped Afghanistan post 175/5 but impactful innings from Kusal Mendis, Danushka Gunathilaka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa helped them chase the target with 5 balls to spare.
Kusal Mendis smashed 19-ball 36 to set the tone of the match. After the 62-run opening stand, Sri Lanka never had a great partnership but there were small impactful performances throughout. Pathum Nissanka (35 off 28), Danushka Gunathilaka (33 off 20) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (31 off 14) besides Wanindu Hasaranga (16 off 9) all contributed well.
With the highest individual score of just 36, Sri Lanka still got over the line comfortably thanks to cameos right through. The final nail in the coffin was Bhanuka Rajapaksa’s 14-ball 31. With 49 needed off the last five overs, Bhanuka Rajapaksa went 4, 4, 6 against Naveen ul Haq and brought the equation down. He stayed put till just two were needed and all but ensured that Sri Lanka got over the line.
Asia Cup 2022: Brief Scores: Afghanistan: 175 for 6 in 20 overs (Rahmanullah Gurbaz 84, Ibrahim Zadran 40; Dilshan Madushanka 2/37). lost to Sri Lanka: 179 for 6 in 19.1 overs (Kusal Mendis 36, Pathum Nissanka 35, Danushka Gunathilaka 33; Mujeeb Ur Rahman 2/30, Naveen-ul-Haq 2/40).
Afghanistan would depend a lot on opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz who is the 3rd highest run-getter in Asia Cup 2022 with 135 runs in 3 games averaging 45. He top-scored with 84 against Sri Lanka in Afghanistan’s 1st Super 4 game but it went in vain.
Najibullah Zadran, on the other hand, has the best strike rate of 213.79 in Asia Cup 2022 but would like to score more runs. He may be promoted atop the batting order. Skipper all-rounder Mohammad Nabi is out of form with the bat which is a concern for Afghanistan.
On the other hand, off-spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman is the joint highest wicket-taker with 7 scalps averaging a mere 10. Rashid Khan, the world’s top-ranked leg spinner hasn’t picked many wickets-4 according to his liking and would like to add more to his tally against Pakistan and India. Afghanistan is likely to go unchanged against Pakistan and India.
Asia Cup 2022: IND vs AFG- Afghanistan Playing 11 vs India (Predicted), Super 4, Match 5 (A1 vs B2)
Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Rahmanullah Gurbaz will be the preferred opener for the Asia Cup 2022 due to the promising start to his career in the international arena. The young player may quickly eliminate the opposition’s momentum and can produce strong starts while batting as the top-order batter in the opening slot. He has scored 811 runs averaging 27.03 in 30 T20Is, having debuted in T20Is in 2019.
He scored 40 runs off only 18 balls (strike rate of 222.22) against Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup 2022 opener hitting 3 sixes and 4 fours before being bowled by Wanindu Hasaranga. He scored 11 off 18 in the next game against Bangladesh falling prey to Shakib Al Hasan.
He top-scored with 84 off only 45 balls against Sri Lanka in the first Super 4 game but it went in vain. He is the 3rd highest run-getter in the ongoing Asia Cup 2022 with 135 runs in 3 T20Is averaging 45.
