Afghanistan take on Namibia in their third game of this ICC T20 World Cup campaign in the UAE in Abu Dhabi. Meanwhile, this is Namibia’s second game of the tournament. While the Afghans tasted defeat against Pakistan in their previous game, the African nation beat Scotland in their first outing. This game is of immense importance for Afghanistan to win to ensure that they stay in the running for the semi-finals.
Afghanistan lost track after a good start against Pakistan ending up scoring way short of where they wanted to finish. Hazratullah Zazai and Najibullah Zardan will continue to be their main players with the bat with a lot relying on Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan as well. Rashid tried his best with the ball, but Asif Ali’s finishing skills proved too much for the Afghan attack. Against Namibia they have a chance to make amends and come back to winning ways.
Namibia produced a spirited performance against Scotland beating them comfortably in the end. They now have a series of tough matches coming up with Afghanistan being the first team. They have matches against Pakistan, New Zealand and India to follow as the tournament gets even tougher for them.
Match Details:
Team Afghanistan will face Namibia in their 3rd match at the Super12s of the @T20WorldCup tomorrow. The game is set to commence at 2:30 pm AFT. pic.twitter.com/mzf6XKghU2
— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) October 30, 2021
Afghanistan vs Namibia, Match 27, Super 12 Group 2
Venue: Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Date & Time: October 31st, at 3:30 PM IST and 2:00 PM Local Time
Pitch Report
Abu Dhabi has proved to be the toughest wicket to bat on in the tournament so far. Teams have lost wickets within the powerplay making run-scoring difficult in the final overs. Meanwhile, chasing has been the pattern in this tournament to win games. Thus toss and dew factor will play an important role in this afternoon game. Afghans and Namibia have never played a T20I against each other.
Afghanistan vs Namibia– Predicted Playing XI
Afghanistan
Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Asghar Afghan, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (c), Karim Janat, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
Namibia
All smiles after a fantastic win against Scotland 😁 well done boys 👏👏👏👏
🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦🦅🇳🇦#T20WorldCup #EaglesPride #AlwaysHigher #Ebco pic.twitter.com/7ie6tJppNY
— Official Cricket Namibia (@CricketNamibia1) October 27, 2021
Craig Williams, Michael van Lingen, Zane Green (wk), Gerhard Merwe Erasmus (c), David Wiese, JJ Smit, Jan Frylinck, Pikky Ya France, Jan Nicol Lofie-Eaton, Ruben Trumpelmann, Bernard Scholtz
Afghanistan vs Namibia: Fantasy Team Suggestions
Fantasy Suggestion 1: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Craig Williams, Mohammad Nabi, JJ Smit, David Wiese (VC), Mujeeb Ur Rahman (C), Naveen-ul-Haq, Rashid Khan, Ruben Trumpelmann
Fantasy Suggestion 2: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mohammad Shahzad, Hazratullah Zazai (c), Gerhard Merwe Erasmus, Craig Williams, Mohammad Nabi, Michael van Lingen, David Wiese, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Rashid Khan (C), Ruben Trumpelmann (VC)