A spirited Afghanistan will take on a struggling Sri Lankan side in the sec that match of the ICC World Cup 2019 at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Tuesday. Both teams are coming into this match on the back of losses but Afghanistan can take more heart out of their performance against Australia. The Australian bowlers were too good for the Afghan batsmen but they showed the grit to stay out there. Rahmat Shah and Najibullah Zadran were impressive in particular. Even skipper Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan came up with spirited all-round performances.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, were completely outplayed by New Zealand in the previous match, that too at the same venue. None of the batsmen except skipper Dimuth Karunaratne showed the temperament to spend some time at the crease. The bowling was equally woeful as they failed to pick up any wickets and New Zealand chased down the target of 137 without any loss.
Sri Lanka do have a lot of things to improve and they would be eager to perform better in this match. But things won't be easy for them as the Afghan spin trio of Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi are capable of decimation any batting lineup. Their pacers in Dawlat Zadran and Hamid Hasan have a lot of experience too. Sri Lanka's spin department isn't as strong as Afghanistan and that's where they are behind in this encounter.
Weather and Pitch conditions: Slight
A spirited Afghanistan will take on a struggling Sri Lankan side in the sec that match of the ICC World Cup 2019 at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Tuesday. Both teams are coming into this match on the back of losses but Afghanistan can take more heart out of their performance against Australia. The Australian bowlers were too good for the Afghan batsmen but they showed the grit to stay out there. Rahmat Shah and Najibullah Zadran were impressive in particular. Even skipper Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan came up with spirited all-round performances.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, were completely outplayed by New Zealand in the previous match, that too at the same venue. None of the batsmen except skipper Dimuth Karunaratne showed the temperament to spend some time at the crease. The bowling was equally woeful as they failed to pick up any wickets and New Zealand chased down the target of 137 without any loss.
Sri Lanka do have a lot of things to improve and they would be eager to perform better in this match. But things won't be easy for them as the Afghan spin trio of Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi are capable of decimation any batting lineup. Their pacers in Dawlat Zadran and Hamid Hasan have a lot of experience too. Sri Lanka's spin department isn't as strong as Afghanistan and that's where they are behind in this encounter.
Weather and Pitch conditions: Slight showers are expected in Cardiff tomorrow but nothing that would affect the game. The overcast conditions will aid the seamers initially. Otherwise, it will be a good batting track as the game progresses.
Player Recommendations:
Wicket-keeper: Mohammad Shahzad (9 Cr)
Shahzad might have been out for a duck in the previous match but he is a dangerous batsman who can go big on his day. Moreover, the quality spinners in the side give him the opportunity to score points through stumpings and catches as well.
Batsman: Rahmat Shah (9 Cr)
Shah is Afghanistan's best batsman. He scored a well composed 43 against Australia in the last match and showed that he has the temperament to score against the big teams. Sri Lanka have no real threat in their bowling lineup and Shah should enjoy batting against them.
All-Rounder: Mohammad Nabi (10 Cr)
Afghanistan may not be one of the top teams in the world yet but Nabi is definitely one of the top all-rounders. He is equally dangerous with both bat and ball. There are quite a few left-handers in Sri Lanka's batting lineup and Nabi has a high chance of getting better of all of them.
Bowler: Rashid Khan (9.5 Cr)
He is probably the best spinner in the world at the moment. His deceptive googlies give a hard time to the batsmen as he delivers them with almost the same grip as that of leg spin. He has troubled the Sri Lankan batsmen on previous occasions as well. You can expect him to pick multiple wickets in this match.
Captain: Rashid Khan
Vice-Captain: Mohammad Nabi
Predicted Playing XI:
Afghanistan: Mohammad Shahzad, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Hamid Hassan
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Thisara Perera, Isuru Udana, Jeevan Mendis, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga
