Pakistan will take on Afghanistan in match no. 22 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Monday. Babar Azam’s side are currently in the middle of the table with two wins and two losses to their name after their first four matches.
Afghanistan, on the other hand, have recorded just one win so far – stunning defending world champions England by 69 runs in Delhi earlier this month. Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott billed the clash against Pakistan as a must-win clash.
“Every game is a must-win game. This is a World Cup and every game is important. So, I don’t see the other matches just as more important as this. There’s a bit of rivalry as well with this game. So, I guarantee you, my side is very, very excited and looking forward to hopefully pulling away a win,” Trott said in the pre-match press conference.
Just after the schedule of the World Cup was announced, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had requested ICC and BCCI to shift the venue of this match as well. “I didn’t know about that but, as in I didn’t know about them wanting to, I’m not sure about changing the venue, I have no idea about that, but I think, you know, Pakistan have got good spinners themselves. So, I don’t, again, it’s not a case of the spinners for me. It’s a case of everyone doing their job. You know, when the ball’s in the air, catching it. When the ball’s on the ground, fielding it. And when you’re batting, when you’ve got your bat in your hand, making sure that you’re representing the side well and doing what the team needs you to do. And that's it at that situation,” Trott added.
Leg-spinner Usama Mir, who had a disappointing outing against Australia in the last match, is likely to get another match. Pakistan vice-captain Shadab Khan may make a return to the side at the expense of Mohammad Nawaz.
Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai
Date & Time: October 23, 2pm IST onwards
Live Streaming and TV details: Star Sports Network and Disney+ Hotstar website and app
Wicketkeepers: Mohammad Rizwan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Batters: Abdullah Shafique, Saud Shakeel, Imam-ul-Haq
All-rounders: Azmatullah Omarzai
Bowlers: Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Rashid Khan
Captain: Mohammad Rizwan
Vice-captain: Shaheen Shah Afridi
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Nawaz/Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Usama Mir, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
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