The 29th game of the ongoing T20 World Cup will be played between high-flying Afghanistan and winless Papua New Guinea. The match will be played on 14th June at Tarouba.
Afghanistan will look to cement their place in Super Eight while PNG will try to get their maiden win in this T20 World Cup.
Team overview:
Afghanistan had a dreamy start to their T20 World Cup campaign. They edged past Uganda in their opener and then brushed past New Zealand and now sit comfortably to make their way to the Super Eight.
In the last edition of the T20 World Cup, Afghanistan failed to make a mark. They were part of Super 12 but couldn’t register a single win as they lost three games and the rest of the games were washed out.
The Afghanistan openers have been showing dominating performance in this T20 World Cup so far. The duo Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran added 154 against Uganda and 103 against New Zealand. Gurbaz scored half-century in both of the games.
Their pacers Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naveen-ul-Haq also bowled well.
Rashid Khan will be the key bowler without a doubt. Muneeb ur Rahman missed out on the last game against New Zealand because of the injury. He may make a comeback against PNG.
On the other hand, PNG is yet to win a game. In their opening game they lost but at one point they had West Indies in spot of bother. In the next game they made Uganda toil hard to achieve the total of 78.
The PNG team will look to make a mark on the Brian Lara Stadium and the bunch of New Zealand will be cheering for them as their Super Eight journey hinges on, among other things, PNG overpowering Afghanistan.
Seamer Norman Vanua will be the key player as he is PNG’s leading wicket taker. He missed out on an opening game but made a remarkable comeback against Uganda taking 2 wickets for just 19 runs.
Pitch and weather report:
Recent rain in Tarouba slowed the pitch for the Windies-New Zealand match, with some deliveries dipping low and making batting difficult. While rain is expected tomorrow, it should dry the pitch for Friday’s game, potentially favouring spinners. Look for the captain winning the toss to bowl first and capitalise on the morning dew.
Predictions:
Afghanistan has been a force to reckon with. They are a strong T20 side as they rattled the New Zealand side..so, Rashid Khan’s men are favourites to win this upcoming encounter as they will be eager to book their berth in the Super Eight.
Head-to-head record:
Both of the sides faced each other in 2015 in which Afghanistan stood victorious. So, they will be upbeat to face PNG again and take the lead by 2-0.
Where to watch:
Pakistan – PTV Sports, Ten Sports, Myco (Live streaming), Tamasha app (Live streaming), Tapmad (live streaming)
India – Star Sports
England – SkySport Network
USA and Canada (Willow TV)
Caribbean – ESPN Caribbean
New Zealand & Australia – Sky Sports NZ, Prime Video
UK & Northern Ireland – Sky Sports
Sri Lanka – Maharaja TV
Other regions – SuperSport, Sirasa, CricLife, STARZPLAY
