ENG vs AFG Live Score: England will take on Afghan in Match 13 of the World Cup 2023 at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. The defending champions defeated Bangladesh in their last match at Dharamsala registering their first win of the tournament.
It was a huge turnaround for England after suffering defeat in the opening clash of the ODI World Cup 2023. On the other hand, the Afghans are still away from a victory after losing both of their fixtures so far. Their last fixture was against India which the hosts won by 8 wickets chasing the target of 273 runs without breaking a sweat. Afghanistan has to put their every effort into winning this clash otherwise their journey in the ODI World Cup 2023 becomes difficult. On the other hand, England will aim to continue their winning run in this clash to march close to the Knockout stage.
Teams Preview
England Preview
England was in an astute form in their last fixture where England managed to register a massive 137-run win over Bangladesh. They will be happy with the improvement in their bowling attack as they managed to outclass Bangladesh batters for just 227 runs on board. Reece Topley starred with the ball returning with figures of 4-43. He also got good support from Mark Wood whose exceptional bowling helped him to end with 1 for 29 from 10 overs. They will be quite confident with their bowling show & will aim to continue that against Afghanistan as well. Reece will be their biggest bet while Chris Woakes and Adil Rashid will be other key bowlers in this setup to watch out for.
In the batting order, England improved a loss after their defeat against England in the first clash of the tournament. Good from of Dawid Malan, Bairstow & Root in the top order will be their confidence booster. The presence of Brook, Buttler & Livingstone in the middle & lower order will be crucial for their run against Afghanistan. England will aim to continue their winning momentum against Afghanistan in this clash.
England Predicted Playing XI:
Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (c & wk), Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Reece Topley
Afghanistan Preview
Afghanistan has some promising names in the lineup but they still couldn’t lead a fightback in the ODI World Cup 2023 so far. Hashmatullah Shahidi is a prolific batter but his captaincy will be tested in the tournament. He is leading an inexperienced bowling attack while the presence of Mohammed Nabi, Mujeeb & Rashid adds experience to their bowling lineup. Though Afghanistan’s pacers are quite competent they couldn’t match the pace against biggies like India & Afghanistan. In the batting order, Shahidi is the top run-scorer for Afghanistan scoring 76 runs at No 4 against England.
He scored 80 runs against India in the last fixture against India & will be a key batter in the middle order. Rahmat Shah is another experienced batter in this lineup who was part of the 2019 World Cup campaign. He hasn’t looked great so far but he could play an integral role at No 3. Zadran & Mohammad Nabi follow the captain in the batting order at No 5 & 6. Their middle order looks solid & stable with experienced batters in the lineup. Zadran bats at No 5 who can stitch crucial stands & has proven prowess in the past.
Afghanistan Predicted Playing XI:
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Pitch & Weather Conditions
The pitch at the Arun Jaitley stadium in Delhi is batters friendly helping batters to make strokes easily. Plenty of runs can be expected at this venue in this fixture as well. The bowlers can get aid in the second innings under the lights with new ballers playing a crucial role here. Skilled bowlers who can reverse swing will also come into play in the second innings. The weather will be partly cloudy with a high of 35 degrees Celsius.
Toss to bat:
The team winning the toss should opt to bat first as the venue is a haven for batters. First, it was South Africa crossing the 400-run mark, and then India chased down 273 runs in just 35 Overs. The captain winning the toss should opt to bat first & post a competitive total on board.
Winning Prediction
England have dominated Afghanistan in both their clashes so far in their last two World Cups. They will continue to do so unless Afghan spinners make use of the turning pitches. We expect England batters to be on top against Afghan bowlers & put Afghans on the back foot. England is the favorite to win this clash against Afghanistan.
Also read, Why IND vs PAK World Cup Opening Ceremony was not Televised
