This is a contest between teams at the opposite ends of the spectrum. India is unbeaten in the tournament and the only points it has dropped have been due to rain. Afghanistan has lost all of its matches by a big margin and has even failed to be competitive. The match will be played at The Rose Bowl, Southampton on 22nd June and will be live from 3:00 PM IST.
Everything seems to be going to plan for India in the ICC World Cup 2019. They have won all of their matches convincingly and are almost assured of a place in the semi-final. The Men in Blue have had problems of their own when it comes to fitness and injuries which has seen Shikhar Dhawan being ruled out of the tournament with a fracture on his left thumb and Rishabh Pant, who was earlier called in as his cover, is now been his official replacement. On the other hand, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is also expected to be rested due to stiffness in his left hamstring. Mohammad Shami will be likely to be back in playing XI at the place of Bhuvneshwar.
Player To Watch Out For – Virat Kohli
Afghanistan are yet to win a game in this World Cup and are presently rock-bottom in the points table. They have lost all the five matches they have played so far. Afghanistan’s biggest strength was supposed to be its trio of spinners. Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, and Mujeeb ur Rahman have played T20 cricket around the world and even done well in subcontinental conditions. All three of them rendered pretty ineffective in England and that has been very difficult for Afghanistan. Afghanistan’s batting has been very poor and they are likely to struggle against India again.
Player To Watch Out For – Mohammad Nabi
Pitch Report
The ground in Southampton is one of the bigger ones in England. This means that the spinners can bowl freely and go for wickets. Physical fitness, fielding, and running between the wickets are also going to be very important in this match. A flat batting deck with plenty of runs in it lies in store.
Probable Line Ups
India – Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Kedar Jadhav, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah.
Afghanistan – Noor Ali Zadran/Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib (C), Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Ali Khil (wk), Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
PlayerzPot XI
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PlayerzPot Prediction
India will be favorites for this match.
