Asia Cup 2018, Super Four, Match 2: Pakistan vs Afghanistan - Toss Report

Afghanistan won the toss and decided to bat first Pakistan against in the second match of the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi.

Here is what the captains said:

Sarfraz Ahmed:

“We wanted to bat first but it’s not in our hand. We got three changes. Shadab is not fit so Nawaz is back. Amir is not playing and Shaheen Afridi comes in while Haris Sohail comes in for Faheem Ashraf. We have to play a different type of game, we got to play positive cricket against them. We have made couple of plans against them and hopefully we’ll execute.”

Preview:

Any game featuring Afghanistan is garnering widespread attention due to the team’s impressive rise in recent years. What has further added spice to this upcoming game is Afghanistan’s political tension with Pakistan.

Coming to the present form, the two bitter rivals have had slightly contrasting fortunes in their path to the Super Four.  While Afghanistan posted convincing wins against both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to progress to the next stage, while Pakistan suffered a crushing eight-wicket loss versus arch-rivals India.

As usuals, spinners were the backbone of Afghanistan’s impressive showing. Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Rashid Khan continued their impressive showing, picking up 6 wickets between them while being very economical.

Afghanistan will be looking to continue their red-hot streak while Pakistan will be eager to bounce back. With so much riding on this game, one can expect some fireworks in Abu Dhabi.

Playing elevens:

Pakistan:

Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed(w/c), Asif Ali, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Usman Khan, Shaheen Afridi

Afghanistan:

Mohammad Shahzad(w), Ihsanullah Janat, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan(c), Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Aftab Alam, Mujeeb Ur Rahman