AFG vs IND Match Prediction
India and Afghanistan will square off in their first Super 8 match on Thursday at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados. In Group A, India won three of their four games, while rain forced the cancellation of their match against Canada. In Group C, Afghanistan also triumphed in three of their four games. Their only setback, though a significant one, came against the hosts, the West Indies. The previous T20I meeting between India and Afghanistan finished in a draw; that match took place in Bengaluru in January of this year. Neither team has participated in a competition held in Barbados.
LAST 5 MATCHES
INDIA – WWWWA
AFGHANISTAN – WWWWL
India cricket team are expected to go with an unchanged XI which means Kuldeep Yadav will still not find a place in the playing XI. Afghanistan cricket team might rope in Nangeyalia Kharote for Karim Janat.
THE LIKELY PLAYING XIs FOR INDIA & AFGHANISTAN
India likely XI
Batters – Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav
All-Rounders – Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube
Wicketkeeper – Rishabh Pant
Bowlers – Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh
Afghanistan likely XI
Batters – Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Najibulah Zadran
All-Rounders – Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Nangeyalia Kharote
Wicketkeeper – Rahmanullah Gurbaz,
Bowlers – Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Statistical Performance (India)
1. Virat Kohli
The last time Virat Kohli played against Afghanistan, he hammered a ton. That was in the Asia Cup in 2022 and it was Kohli’s first hundred in T20I cricket. Kohli has had a quiet tournament so far but is a giant in the format with a great record in T20 World Cups.
2. Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah is an all-time great in white-ball cricket. He was the Player of the Match against Pakistan and Ireland and has been brilliant with the new ball
Players who can make a Difference (India)
1. Suryakumar Yadav
Suryakumar Yadav did not have a great IPL season but is still rated amongst the best T20I batters in the world. SKY has the highest strike rate in the format’s history – a staggering 168 – and has already hammered four hundreds and 18 fifties in just 60 innings. SKY is a 360-degrees batter whose unconventional stroke-play might just be the game-changer again on Thursday. SKY has a strike rate of 182 against pace in T20I cricket!
2. Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant’s unorthodox stroke-play makes him a match-winner against any opposition. He has been in fine form in the tournament scoring 96 runs in three innings in difficult batting conditions. Pant’s ability to get the boundaries behind square makes him a dangerous batter especially if he is batting in the Top 3.
Statistical Performance (Afghanistan)
1. Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Gurbaz is a destructive batter at the top of the order for Afghanistan who will take the attack to the Indian bowlers in the powerplay. Gurbaz has an excellent record in T20 World Cup cricket. He scored a match-winning 80 against New Zealand in this tournament.
2. Rashid Khan
Rashid is amongst the greatest bowlers in T20I cricket history and he also has an excellent record in World Cup cricket. Rashid is brilliant against left-handers.
Players who can make a Difference (Afghanistan)
1. NOOR AHMAD
Noor Ahmad is a talented Chinaman bowler who has picked 97 wickets in 96 T20s at a strike rate of 21 and economy of 7.3. Although he just bagged 8 wickets in 10 matches in IPL 2024, he impressed with his line and length and control and conceded just 8.32 an over in a high-scoring tournament.
2. NAJIBULLAH ZADRAN
Najibullah is a veteran of 106 matches in which he has scored 1811 runs at an average of 29.7 and strike rate of 138. He is a clean striker of the ball and has a scoring rate of 199 in the death overs in T20I cricket.
Team Head to Head
India and Afghanistan have faced each other 8 times in T20I cricket out of which India has won 7 including the Tied encounter in Bengaluru earlier this year. India and Afghanistan have met each other three times in T20 World Cups and all these encounters have been won by India.
Player Head to Head
1. ROHIT SHARMA vs RASHID KHAN IN T20s
INNINGS – 8
BALLS FACED – 40
RUNS SCORED – 55
WICKETS – 4
Rohit Sharma has struggled a bit against Rashid Khan in T20 cricket. The leg spinner has dismissed him 4 times in 8 matches.
2. VIRAT KOHLI vs FAZALHAQ FAROOQI IN T20s
INNINGS – 2
BALLS FACED – 16
RUNS SCORED – 37
WICKETS – 0
Virat Kohli has taken Fazalhaq Farooqi to the cleaners and this will be an interesting battle in the powerplay.
3. RAHMANULLAH GURBAZ vs LEG SPIN IN T20IS SINCE 2022
INNINGS – 9
BALLS FACED – 55
RUNS SCORED – 57
WICKETS – 4
Rahmanullah Gurbaz has found it tough against leg spin in the last couple of years but India are not likely to include Yuzvendra Chahal in the XI.
Venue and Pitch
The Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados has hosted 29 T20I matches and chasing seems to be the preferred option – the captain winning the toss has opted to field on 17 occasions. However, it is advantage batting first at the venue. The team setting a target has won 18 matches while the team chasing has just been victorious in just 8! The average score batting first is 161/7 while the average score in the second innings is 141/7. The win probability after winning the toss is 55.6%.
Prediction of Match
Barbados will give India the advantage, especially because of the wicket’s favourable tilt for seamers. The wicket will not do anything to benefit Afghanistan’s spinners. Expect Virat Kohli to provide a huge performance on Thursday after being removed from the team due to three low scores during the group round. In the powerplay, the fight between Gurbaz and Bumrah will be vital. India is the starting favourite with a 65% likelihood of winning based on the relative strengths of both teams, form, and circumstances.
