After the conclusion of the very interesting qualification stage, it is time for the Super 12. The qualification was just a trailer of how entertaining the Super-12 stage is going to be. The first day of the main tournament will be beginning with double header from Group 1. (You can check the preview of Australia Vs New Zealand in the previous post).
Overview:
The last time these 2 sides clashed in an ICC Tournament, it was in the league stage of World Cup 2019. England had defeated Afghanistan by a massive 150 runs and the major contribution came from their skipper Eoin Morgan who smashed 148 off just 71 balls, also creating the record for most sixes by a player in an innings (17).
But now the format, venue, captains and most importantly Afghanistan’s strength has changed. They are no more an associate side which serves free points for other teams. They might not have reached the Asia Cup final, but they did have their moments as they reached the Super 4 staying unbeaten.
England, on the other hand, are high on momentum winning all of their last played T20I series (2 each against Pakistan and Australia). They might have their own weakness, but yet they are considered as one of the favorites to win the tournament.
Predicted XI:
Afghanistan: Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Usman Ghani, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (C), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Naveen ul Haq, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Fareed Ahmad Malik
England: Jos Buttler (C) (WK), Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
Weather and Pitch Report:
As this is a night match, the temperature should be around 15-18 °C with no signs of rain.
The pitch is expected to be flat and a high scoring match is on card. Though, fast bowlers might get pace and bounce in the first few overs, but batting will be easy once the ball gets old. The recent T20I match played between Australia and England produced 400+ combined runs.
Toss winning side should be opting to field first.
Match Details:
Venue: Optus Stadium, Perth
Date: Saturday, 22 October
Time: 7 PM Local (Perth) (4:30 PM IST)
Interesting Facts / Milestones
1. Hazratullah Zazai needs 40 runs to complete 1000 T20I Runs. If he gets there, he would become 6th Afghanistan player (91st Overall) to reach the milestone after Mohammad Shahzad, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Asghar Afghan and Samiullah Shinwari
2. Moeen Ali is just 13 runs away from similar milestone. If he does that, he would become 8th English batsman (91st Overall) to reach the milestone after Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler, Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Kevin Pietersen.
3. Mujeeb Ur Rahman is just 5 wickets away from completing 50 T20I wickets, making him only the 3rd Afghanistan bowler (70th Overall) to reach the feat after Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi.
4. Rashid needs just 5 wickets to become the highest Wicket Taker in T20I. He currently has 118 wickets, 4 behind the joint highest wicket takers – Shakib Al Hasan and Tim Southee
5. If Usman Ghani bats and score anything but a duck, he would become just the 10th batsman in T20I history to have No Ducks his first 30 T20I Innings.
6. Liam Livingstone needs just 33 Runs to complete 5000 T20 Runs.
Dream XI Team:
