PAK vs AFG Preview: Pakistan one win away from a spot in the final

Pakistan are set to take on Afghanistan in the Super 4 game of the Asia Cup 2022 and this is expected to be a mouth-watering clash. Both sides have contrasting results in the previous game and this will be an important game in the context of how things have panned out so far.

The Men in Green came up with a strong redemption against India for the loss in the group fixtures and produced an incredible victory in their previous encounter. Mohammad Nawaz’s all-round show alongside Mohammad Rizwan’s half-century helped the side to a win and they have ticked most of the boxes with not much to worry about. Mohammad Hasnain was impressive in his comeback game and he is likely to get the nod again.

On the other hand, Afghanistan is coming off a defeat in the hands of Sri Lanka in the previous game and their bowling attack looked in all sorts of disarray. Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman did not have the best of days and it meant that the pressure was on the quicker bowlers to deliver. In terms of the batting department, the top order made a hefty contribution, however, the middle order could not finish well which will be one of the areas of concern.

Weather Conditions and Pitch behaviour

The Sharjah Cricket Stadium has been hot and humid this tournament and it has been really difficult to defend scores. The spinners do get a lot of purchase from the wicket and toss will be a huge factor with the short boundaries. The skipper winning the toss is likely to bowl first considering the factors around.

Current form (Last 5 games)

Pakistan – W, W, L, W, W

Afghanistan – L , W, W, L, W

Venue Details – Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah

Previous Game at the venue – AFG – 175/6, SL – 179/6 in 19.1 overs.

Playing Combinations

The teams are unlikely to make any changes to the team that played in their last encounter.

Pakistan

Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Khushdil Shah, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah

Afghanistan

Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (c), Najibullah Zadran, Karim Janat, Samiullah Shinwari, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi