Asia ODI Series 2023

Match 6: AFG vs SL

Preview 

Sri Lanka and Afghanistan will lock horns in match number 6 of the Asia ODI Series 2023 at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on Tuesday (September 5). Led by Dasun Shanaka Sri Lanka have played only one game in the Asia ODI series so far, and won it. But if things go amiss against Afghanistan in match number 6, they could well be out of the competition. But for that to happen, Afghanistan will have to secure a monumental win. The margin will precisely depend on the match situation. Hypothetically, if they were to score 275 runs batting first, they would ought to win by a significant margin of at least 68 runs, or hunt down a total inside 35 overs or less. 

Enough to say this gives Sri Lanka a pretty effective cushion, particularly on a Lahore track that has been emphatically greedy for runs. This also will be a huge relief for Sri Lanka’s batters, who over the past month- essentially during the Lanka T20 League- been put through to quite less batter friendly tracks.   

With that being said, the toss is likely to play a pivotal role. While the team bowling second might have to battle with the dew, it’s probably a rougher deal for the side bowling first as they would have to do so in scorching Lahore heat. In fact, Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan post match on Sunday highlighted it wouldn’t have been easy for Afghanistan to bat after fielding first for the 50 overs. 

Keeping the match conditions aside, Sri Lanka versus Afghanistan will be a fairly even contest. Sri Lanka holds the edge by 3-2 in the last five completed ODIs against Afghanistan. And now Sri Lanka's bowling prowess is pretty much without their preferred choices. 

Afghanistan will start the game as second favourites. They will be well aware that the odds will be heavily stacked in their opposition’s favour. With one loss in one game, the Afghan side will be looking to open their account. For that they will have to refute the notion that their batting is a tad fragile once you get past the top order. 

Match Details

Match: AFG vs SL, 6th Match, Group B, Asia ODI Series, 2023

Date: Tuesday, September 05, 2023

Time: 3:00 PM

Venue: Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore

Pitch and Weather Report

Expect a batting friendly track. Bangladesh got 334 batting first last time around at this venue. 300 is a par first innings total on this wicket. The weather is anticipated to be hot and humid with a maximum temperature of 37 degree celsius. 

AFG vs SL Squads

AFG: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Riaz Hassan, Ikram Alikhil, Abdul Rahman, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Noor Ahmad, Suliman Safi

SL: Kusal Mendis (wk), Dasun Shanaka (c), Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Matheesha Pathirana, Kusal Perera, Binura Fernando, Pramod Madushan, Dushan Hemantha

AFG vs SL Probable Playing XIs

AFG: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi

SL: Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka (capt), Dushan Hemantha/Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Matheesha Pathirana

Match Prediction

We predict a hard fought victory for Sri Lanka. 

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