Tag: Afghanistan

Match #7: Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka Prediction

How This Works!

This post is set to go before each match. I briefly breakdown the batting and bowling attack of each squad and how they relate to each other before selecting who I think is going to win. Because cricket can be won by a number of wickets (if you’re chasing) or runs (if you’re defending), I’m simply going to select who I think is going to win outright, not in the manner, or by how many runs, they’re going to win by. Makes sense? (Quickly moves on before acknowledging any questions) Great! Let’s get started!

Bowling:

Afghanistan Bowlers/All Rounders: Gulbadin Naib ©, Aftab Alam, Dawlat Zadran, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan , Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah, Samiullah Shinwari

Sri Lanka Bowlers/All Rounders: Jeffrey Vandersay, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Angelo Matthews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Thisara Perara, Isuru Udana, Jeevan Mendis, Milinda Siriwardana

ICC Ranking Average: (Measured by taking the top 5 bowlers in ICC’s player ratings. Those 5 rankings are then averaged out. The lower the number, the better. If a player is marked out, Dale Steyn in this case, they are not included in the ranking, as they are not effecting the match.)

Afghanistan

  • Rashid Khan: 3
  • Mujeeb ur Rahmen: 10
  • Mohammad Nabi: 20
  • Dawlet Zadran: 55
  • Gulbadin Naib: 58
  • Avg: 29

Sri Lanka

  • Suranga Lakmal: 42
  • Lasith Malinga: 47
  • Nuwan Pradeep: 61
  • Angelo Matthews: 77
  • Thisara Perara: 79
  • Avg: 61

Breakdown: Not looking great for Sri Lanka 😬. Coming off a match against New Zealand where they failed to get a wicket, it’s not surprising that their bowling attack is ranked poorly. All things considered, even without the poor showing against a talented NZ batting duo, Afghanistan was always the choice here. Their spin attack is effective and sometimes lethal after a fairly strong performance against Australia, all things considered.

Advantage: Afghanistan. By quite a bit.

Batting:

Afghanistan Batters/All Rounders: Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad, Noor ali Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah, Samiullah Shinwari

Sri Lanka Batters/All Rounders: Dimuth Karunaratne, Avishka Fernando, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Matthews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Thisara Perara, Isuru Udana, Jeevan Mendis, Milinda Siriwardana

ICC Ranking Average: (See rules for bowlers above and replace that with batters. You got it!)

Afghanistan

  • Mohammad Shahzad: 38
  • Rahmat Shah: 40
  • Mohammad Nabi: 55
  • Najibullah Zadran: 68
  • Hashmatullah Shahidi: 80
  • Avg: 56

Sri Lanka

  • Angelo Matthews: 40
  • Kusal Mendis: 57
  • Kusal Perera: 72
  • Thisara Perera: 74
  • Lahiru Thirimanne: 84
  • Avg: 65

Breakdown: Honestly, not a great look for either side. Coming into the tournament it was known that Afghanistan would lean heavily on their bowling attack, and here’s why. Sri Lanka’s recent form speaks for itself.

Advantage: Afghanistan. Simply because they’re going up against a weaker bowling attack. This game is one of those that may be incredibly entertaining because both teams are struggling and need a big win. They both have a lot to prove.

A final bold and likely dumb take:

Rashid Khan takes 5 wickets and becomes the leading wicket taker of the tournament for a short time.

Final Prediction: Afghanistan in a surprisingly entertaining match.

Australia vs Afghanistan Prediction (Match #4)

Putting my picks out in public! This should end well and not embarrass me once, no, there’s no chance of that. (Prepares to delete entire site if I get three losses in a row.)

How This Works!

This post is set to go before each match. I briefly breakdown the batting and bowling attack of each squad and how they relate to each other before selecting who I think is going to win. Because cricket can be won by a number of wickets (if you’re chasing) or runs (if you’re defending), I’m simply going to select who I think is going to win outright, not in the manner, or by how many runs, they’re going to win by. Makes sense? (Quickly moves on before acknowledging any questions) Great! Let’s get started!

Bowling:

Australian Bowlers/All Rounders: Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Kane Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis

Afghanistan Bowlers/All Rounders: Gulbadin Naib ©, Aftab Alam, Dawlat Zadran, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah, Samiullah Shinwari

ICC Ranking Average: (Measured by taking the top 5 bowlers in ICC’s player ratings. Those 5 rankings are then averaged out. The lower the number, the better.)

Australia:

  • Cummins: 6
  • Starc: 22
  • Zampa: 43
  • Coulter-Nile: 47
  • Lyon: 50
  • Avg: 33

Afghanistan:

  • Khan: 3
  • ur Rahmen: 10
  • Nabi: 20
  • Dawlet: 55
  • Naib: 58
  • Avg: 29

Breakdown: I see your rankings, ICC, but in this case, I’m still going to have to back Australia. Rashid Khan is the best in white ball cricket right now, there’s little room for debate there. Starc’s ranking comes from his lack of recent play due to injuries. I’d take him over anybody, outside of Khan, if in need of a bowler.

Advantage: Australia

Batting:

Australian Batters/All Rounders: Aaron Finch ©, Alex Carey, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Steve Smith, David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis

Afghanistan Batters/All Rounders: Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad, Noor ali Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah, Samiullah Shinwari

ICC Ranking Average: (Measured by taking the top 5 batters in ICC’s player ratings. Those 5 rankings are then averaged out. The lower the number, the better.)

Australia:

  • Finch: 11
  • Khawaja: 21
  • Maxwell: 24
  • Stonis: 37
  • Marsh: 44
  • Avg: 27

Afghanistan:

  • Shahzad: 38
  • Shah: 40
  • Nabi: 55
  • Najibullah Zadran: 68
  • Shahidi: 80
  • Avg: 56

Breakdown: The clearest of advantages for Australia. Even excluding Smith and Warner in the rankings because of their lack of play due to suspension, Australia dominates.

Advantage: Australia.

Final Prediction: Australia wins by a large margin.

A final bold and likely dumb call: David Warner goes for a half century (58, to be exact) in this World Cup debut. Why not? I don’t expect this match to be too interesting, so let’s try and have some fun with it.

Afghanistan Roster Breakdown

This team has some explosive bowlers, can their batters keep up?

Batters/Fielders: Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad, Noor ali Zadran

Bowlers: Gulbadin Naib ©, Aftab Alam, Dawlat Zadran, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan

All Rounders: Mohammad Nabi, Rahmat Shah, Samiullah Shinwari

Don’t Sleep On

– Hamid Hassan: The wild boy of Afghan cricket certainly leads the team in edginess. With his headband and warpaint ready to go, Hassan’s play after three years away from the team could make the difference in a few matches.

– Hazratullah Zazai: At 21-years-old, Zazai’s youth and experience on the big stage could be a good thing. Hear me out, youthful bliss can go along way! There’s little pressure on this team as far as expectations go, so Zazai can go out and gain vital experience for future tournaments.

Needed to Make a Run

– Mohammad Nabi: The allrounder had a fairly uneventful IPL with Hyderabad, but look for him to kick off some of the rust during the opening match against Australia.  

–Gulbadin Naib: He’s the captain, that says it all. How he leads the team in the field is key. He’ll need to stay around his 5.5 economy rating and make sure to take his fair share of wickets to keep pressure off of Khan.

Key to the Cup

– Rashid Khan: The golden boy of bowling right now, Rashid Khan needs an otherworldly performance to push Afghanistan into anything more than a few group play wins. Look for him to be a game changer with both bat and ball this tournament.

Why Should I Watch?

On the international cricket stage, Afghanistan is still very young. This is an exciting time to make a splash on the international stage. While a semi-final run seems increasingly unlikely, they do have a match winner in Rashid Khan, who is one of the most electric players on the planet.

How Much Fun is this Team? (8/10)

Rashid Khan. That’s enough.

Best Case:

Major upsets! Afghanistan taking down giants such as England, Australia or India would become the stuff of legend. It doesn’t seem like a run to semis is possible, so one or two big wins will have to do!

Worst Case:

Injuries plague what is a really fun team. Being ranked 10th out of 10 teams means there’s very little in regards to expectations here. Afghanistan isn’t expected to win much, so the only thing worse than that would be those matches being lost due to injuries.