Sri Lanka made it to the Super 4 round of Asia Cup 2022 yesterday with a stunning late comeback against Bangladesh and they are now all set to face Afghanistan in the first game of Super 4 on Saturday. Incidentally, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan were the two teams that had played the first game of the preliminary round of the Asia Cup as well, last Saturday.
While Afghanistan looked a very strong side for the UAE conditions in both the games that they played in the preliminary round, the momentum that Sri Lanka is now carrying into the Super 4 after a close win against Bangladesh might make a difference for them.
This is the highest successful chase ever in Asia Cup T20 history – Take a bow Sri Lanka. pic.twitter.com/gMHi8oe85P
Advertisement— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) September 1, 2022
One of the areas where Afghanistan used to lag behind in the past was their fast bowling department, where they didn’t have as many wicket-taking options as they had with their spinners. But, that seems to have changed now and in this Asia Cup 2022, the Afghan side is capable enough to take advantage of seamer-friendly conditions too. On paper, they probably have more match winners than Sri Lanka with both bat and ball.
Pitch report for Afghanistan Vs Sri Lanka in Asia Cup 2022 Super 4
This will be Asia Cup’s last game at Sharjah and the spinners will have a huge role to play because of the low bounce on the surface. While the batsmen from both sides will mostly look to hit the ball straight, the bowlers will have to bowl slightly back of a length and not too full to make sure the low bounce in the surface comes into play.
Although the low bounce is expected to trouble the batsmen in both innings, batting second will still be a better option because Sharjah is a six-hitting ground.
Probable XIs
Afghanistan
Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (C), Karim Janat, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Naveen ul Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Sri Lanka
Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (WK), Charith Asalanka, Danushka Gunathilaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka (C), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Asitha Fernando, Ashan Madhushanka
Final prediction for Afghanistan Vs Sri Lanka in Asia Cup 2022 Super 4
The final prediction is for Afghanistan to beat Sri Lanka again, as their spin bowling quality and power-hitting ability are of a higher standard as compared to Sri Lanka.
