Team Preview: BAN vs. AFG, Asia Cup 2022 Match 3
On Tuesday, August 30, at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah, the third game of the Asia Cup 2022 will take place between Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Bangladesh, who placed second in the last two competitions, would be hoping for nothing less than a triumph this time around. Shakib Al Hasan has been named as the new captain of Bangladesh. Shakib will resume his duties as captain against the same opponent in September 2019, when his previous tenure against Afghanistan came to an end. Among the captains who have led the team for more than 20 T20Is, Shakib has the lowest win % in T20Is. He will be trying to improve this particular record this time because it was the reason he was fired the past time.
Bangladesh vs Afghanistan, Match 3
Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah
Date & Time: 30th August at 7:30 PM IST and 6:00 PM Local Time
Live Streaming: Star Sports Network
On the other side, Afghanistan’s performance in the opening game against Sri Lanka was excellent. The players gave a strong overall performance and turned the game in their favour. The bowlers from Afghanistan did an amazing job, holding Sri Lanka to just 105 runs in 19.4 overs. Rashid Khan failed to secure a wicket throughout the game, but this still occurred. In just 10.1 overs, the Afghani hitters successfully chased down this meagre total. Bangladesh’s aim of defeating Afghanistan in this game would not be simple.
Bangladesh
Mohammad Naim, Anamul Haque (wk), Shakib Al Hasan (c), Afif Hossain, Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mohammad Saifuddin, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman
Afghanistan
Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (c), Rashid Khan, Azmatullah Omarzai, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi
In the last 5 T20 games played at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, 169 runs have been scored on average in the first innings. The second half of the game may feature a significant function for spinners as the batters are likely to find it simple to score runs in this situation.
| Player | Career T20I Stats |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | 716 runs |
| Mahmudullah | 2070 runs and 38 wickets |
| Hazratullah Zazai | 904 runs |
| Shakib Al Hasan | 2010 runs and 121 wickets |
| Rashid Khan | 112 wickets |
Best Batters, according to Hazratullah Zazai
In the first game, he and Rahmanullah Gurbaz added 83 runs for the first wicket and he scored 37 runs off just 28 deliveries. Zazai has played nine matches this year, scoring 242 runs at an average of 34.57 and a strike rate of 134.44. Afghanistan would be hoping for a similar effort from him in this match as it was against Bangladesh that he scored his sole half-century in T20Is this year.
By Afif Hossain
He is the team’s vice-captain for this competition and has been playing in excellent form recently. Hossain has scored 585 runs in 35 T20 Internationals since 2021 at an average of 21.66 and a strike rate of 117.46. Since making his debut, he has scored runs at a 32.5 average per season, which is his greatest average in a calendar year. In the most recent ODI match against Zimbabwe, he achieved an unbeaten score of 85 and was also named Player of the Match.
Best Choice All-Rounders
By Shakib Al Hasan
Shakib Al Hasan had his greatest T20Is season in 2021. He took 25 wickets with the ball in 18 games, average 16.88. Since his debut in 2006, Shakib had never taken more than 20 wickets in a calendar year prior to this one. This was the first time since his debut that he had scored more than 300 runs, as he batted 327 runs at an average of 19.23. He hasn’t been able to put up such performances in T20Is this year, and the team will be hoping he finds his stride soon because they have a World Cup coming up.
Muslim Nabi:
His finest bowling performance since 2018 came in the first game when he took 2 wickets for 14 runs in 4 overs. He is batting in the bottom middle order and may not get a chance to bat because several players in the top of the order are in good form. He can therefore only help the squad with the ball. We might see “The President” put on another game-changing bowling display.
Favorite Bowlers
Raphael Khan
His economy rate this year has been 6 in 11 games, but he hasn’t been able to reliably pick up wickets. He has not taken a wicket in 4 of the 11 games he has played this year. Additionally, he has only taken two wickets in a game so far this year. But given that the spinners will likely have some support from the surface in this match, he might be able to put on a strong display. Additionally, he is among the best bowlers in the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. In five games, he has taken 10 wickets at an average of 10.1, a strike rate of 11, and an economy of 5.5.
Mujeeb-ur-Rahman:
At the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, he has also loved playing. His finest T20I bowling performance has only occurred here. Mujeeb took 5 wickets for just 20 runs in a T20 World Cup match he played against Scotland. This bowling figure is also the second-best at this facility. In the most recent game against Sri Lanka, he picked up 2 wickets for just 24 runs.
Picks for the Wicketkeeper
Richard Gurbaz:
In the most recent match against Sri Lanka, he hit 40 runs off just 18 deliveries, aiding Afghanistan in winning by an eight-wicket margin. Gurbaz has scored 185 runs at an average of 18.5 and a strike rate of 130.28 in 10 games this year.
Anamul Hasan
In two of the three ODIs this month against Zimbabwe, he recorded half-centuries. He hasn’t had the same success in T20Is, though. Haque has 440 runs scored at an average of 25.88 with a strike rate of 115.48 in 19 T20Is. He last appeared for Bangladesh in this format back in 2015, playing six T20Is this year. He might not be the best choice for your fantasy team’s captain in this game.
Naveen-ul-Haq:
Pathum Nissanka was struck with his fifth delivery of the first game while he was opening the bowling for Afghanistan. He bowled three overs and gave up 23 runs; this was his lone wicket in the contest. Naveen has taken 8 wickets at an average of 18 in 6 games this year.
Player to stay away from:
Azamatullah Omarzai
In March of this year, he played Bangladesh in his first T20I match. In just his second T20I game, he won Player of the Match after picking up five wickets in his first two games. He hasn’t been the same since then, though, and in the past nine games, he has only taken one wicket.
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