Preview

India and Afghanistan are set to lock horns in Match No.33 of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021 on Wednesday, November 3 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. India, led by Virat Kohli, are in deep trouble, having lost both their Super 12 matches against Pakistan and New Zealand in Dubai.

If they lose their next match, they will officially be knocked out of the competition. The Afghans, led by Mohammad Nabi, on the other hand, have a realistic chance of qualifying for the semis. They won their previous game against Scotland by 62 runs and got their net run rate up to a stunning 3.097.

Match Details

Match – India vs Afghanistan – Match 33

Venue – Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi.

Time – 07:30 PM IST, 02:00 PM GMT

Where to watch live – Star Sports Network

Pitch Report

The pitch in Abu Dhabi hasn’t been an overly great one for batting. The team, batting first, has mostly strained to find much rhythm. The chasing teams have mostly dominated, winning 78 percent of the matches. Bowlers are expected to have a decent day in the office.

Average first innings score: 131 (10 T20Is in Abu Dhabi in T20 World Cup 2021)

Record of Chasing teams: Won – 7, Lost – 3, Tied – 0

Probable Playing XIs

India

Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakravarthy/Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah

Bench: Ravichandran Ashwin/Varun Chakravarthy, Rahul Chahar, Suryakumar Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Afghanistan

Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mohammad Nabi (c), Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Karim Janat, Hamid Hassan, Naveen-ul-Haq

Bench: Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fareed Ahmad, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Usman Ghani

Head-to-head

Overall

Matches- 2, India – 2, Afghanistan– 0, Tied- 0

In T20 World Cups

Matches- 2, India – 2, Afghanistan– 0, Tied- 0

Probable best batter of the match

KL Rahul (India)

KL Rahul is a class act without a shred of a doubt. He was one of the leading run-scorers in the 2021 edition of the IPL. But the right-hander has found the going tough in the World Cup. The Bangalore-born has notched only 21 runs from two games at an average of 10.50. But Rahul isn’t someone to stay quiet for long and is expected to make a comeback.

Probable best bowler of the match

Jasprit Bumrah (India)

The Indian bowling has been shambolic in the World Cup. Apart from Jasprit Bumrah, none of their bowlers have got a wicket in the tournament. Bumrah picked up two wickets against New Zealand and looked in some form. The fact that he has bowled at an economy rate of 5.85 shows that he has been able to keep a check on the run-scoring.

Today’s match prediction: India to win the match.

Disclaimer: This prediction is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While making your prediction, consider the points mentioned, and make your own decision.