Asia Cup 2022, SL vs AFG: Nabi elects to field
What's the story
Afghanistan face Sri Lanka in the opening match of the Asia Cup 2022 on Saturday. The Afghans head into the tourney post a 3-2 humbling defeat versus Ireland. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka have had a torrid run so far in 2022, with two wins in 11 T20Is. The news from the center is that Afghanistan skipper Mohammad Nabi has elected to bowl first.
Details
Pitch report, timing, and TV listing
The Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai will host this affair. Sides chasing have won 39 of 74 T20Is played here. The wicket is known to assist the batters, so anything around 150-160 could be anticipated here. Pacers can be a handful early on. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network (7:30 PM IST) and live-streamed on Hotstar app (paid subscription).
H2H
Here is the head-to-head record in T20Is
Sri Lanka have a 1-0 lead over Afghanistan in their T20I match-ups. The Lankans bested their rivals by six wickets in the previous encounter during the 2016 T20 World Cup. Afghanistan managed 153, riding on Asghar Afghan's 62. For SL, Thisara Perera claimed a three-fer (3/33). Later, Tillakaratne Dilshan's 56-ball 83* made light work of the 154-run chase.
Stats
Here are the key performers (T20Is)
Hazratullah Zazai has slammed 867 runs in 28 matches, averaging 33.35. He has a hundred and three fifties. Najibullah Zadran has managed 1,487 runs at 33.04. He has eight fifties. Left-arm quick Fareed Malik has snared 24 scalps at 20.21. Pathum Nissanka has belted 628 runs across 28 T20Is. He owns five fifties, with a personal best of 75.
Teams
2 new faces for Sri Lanka
Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka confirmed that his side is going in with two all-rounders in the form of Dilshan Madushanka and Matheesha Pathirana. Sri Lanka Playing XI: Gunathilaka, Nissanka, K Mendis, Asalanka, Rajapaksa, Shanaka, Hasaranga, Karunaratne, Theekshana, Madushanka, Pathirana Afghanistan Playing XI: Zazai, Gurbaz, I Zadran, Janat, N Zadran, Nabi, Rashid, Omarzai, Naveen, Ur Rahman, Farooqi