Afghanistan face a formidable challenge in their upcoming clash against a skilled Sri Lankan team on Tuesday as they hope for a big win in order to enter the 'Super 4' stage of the Asia Cup
Following their recent loss to Bangladesh, Afghanistan not only find themselves in a must-win situation but also require a resounding victory to secure a top-two finish in Group B.
Their run-rate took a hit after Sunday night's defeat, while Sri Lanka, victorious against Bangladesh in their first match, boast a healthy net run rate of 0.951. Bangladesh, having posted a score of over 300 against Afghanistan, enjoy a superior run rate and are the favourites, along with the Lankans, to advance to the next stage.
The Sri Lanka-Afghanistan fixture, scheduled as the second match at the Gadaffi Stadium, promises to be a high-scoring affair.
In the absence of express fast bowlers, Afghanistan rely heavilyt on the spin duo of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Zadran. Rashid remained wicketless in the previous game, and his team will be counting on him to deliver a match-winning performance against Sri Lanka. Afghanistan's fielding, unfortunately, left much to be desired.
A positive for Afghanistan lies in the recent form of openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka hope for a strong showing from their top-order batsmen following their struggles against Bangladesh. With three injured pacers sidelined, young Matheesha Pathirana impressed with four wickets in the opener and is expected to make life difficult for Afghanistan's batters.
Mystery spinner Maheesh Theekshana excelled with the new ball against Bangladesh and will hope to do the same against the Afghans.
"We need to improve in all the departments. Our bowling was not good enough, and neither was our fielding. Lahore is near our country, so the fans were waiting for this game. Hopefully, they will come and support us again in the next game," Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi had said after the loss on Sunday night.
(AI image)
SQUADS
Sri Lanka: Dasun Shanaka (c), Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Janith Perera, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Dananjaya de Silva, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Mahesh Theekshana, Dunith Wellalage, Matheesha Pathirana, Kasun Rajitha, Dushan Hemantha, Binura Fernando and Pramod Madushan
Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Ibrahim Zadran, Ikram Alikhil, Najibullah Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Riaz Hassan, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah, Rashid Khan, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Abdul Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mohammad Saleem, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad
(With agency inputs)
