Afghanistan will face Sri Lanka in the 30th match of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 on Monday. The AFG vs SL game will be played at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune from 2 PM IST onwards.
Emboldened by back-to-back wins, a tenacious Sri Lanka will have to tide over the injury-enforced absence of lead pacer Lahiru Kumara when they face a spirited Afghanistan in a battle for survival in the World Cup match.
Kumara was ruled out of the World Cup on Sunday with a left thigh muscle injury which he suffered here during a training session. ICC's technical committee has approved pacer Dushmantha Chameera as his replacement.
Kumara had shown fine form during Sri Lanka's eight-wicket win over England in Bengaluru on October 26. His three-wicket haul (3/35) helped the Islanders bowl out the defending champions for a paltry 156.
Chameera was not included in Sri Lanka's initial 15-member World Cup squad after he suffered an injury during the Lanka Premier League. But later, the right-arm quick was called up as a travelling reserve along with veteran Angelo Mathews.
Mathews was also drafted into the Sri Lanka squad as a replacement for injured pacer Matheesha Pathirana ahead of the match against England.
Sri Lanka (NRR: -0.205) have four points from five matches and are now placed fifth on the table, while Afghanistan (NRR: -0.969) with similar numbers are placed seventh on the basis of net run rate.
Both the teams have kept alive their outside hopes of making it to the semifinals, provided they don't suffer any more hiccups and other results go their way in the showpiece event.
However, only one team can emerge victorious from this contest, dashing the slim chances of the other.
After three successive defeats, Sri Lanka have revived some hopes with two convincing victories over Netherlands and England. But they will take Afghanistan lightly at their own peril, knowing well that the Afghans are capable of punching above their weight.
Afghanistan have sent shock waves across the world with wins over England and Pakistan and will look to knock the wind out of the sails of Sri Lanka to continue their success story.
The wicket at the MCA stadium is likely to be another belter and a 300-plus total should be on the cards. Going by records, Afghanistan have won just thrice in 11 ODIs against Sri Lanka but never in the two meetings in the World Cup.
But two of those wins came in June this year and November last year at Hambantota and Pallekele respectively and Afghanistan will draw inspiration from that when they face the Lankans.
World Cup 2023: Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka Live Telecast Details
The AFG vs SL World Cup 2023 match will be broadcast live on the Star Sports Network in India.
World Cup 2023: Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka Live Streaming Details
Disney+ Hotstar will livestream the Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka World Cup 2023 match on its app and website.
World Cup 2023: How To Watch AFG vs SL In Afghanistan And Sri Lanka?
In Afghanistan, the AFG vs SL World Cup 2023 match can be watched via:
Ariana TV
Ariana News
arianatelevision.com
sports.afghan-wireless.com
ariananews.af
Sri Lankan fans in the island country can watch the match live on TV1,
Sirasa TV and Shakthi TV. Live streaming of the ENG vs SL match will be available on sirasatv.lk in Sri Lanka.
Afghanistan's Predicted Playing XI
Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
Sri Lanka's Predicted Playing XI
Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis (c and wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Angelo Mathews, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka.
(With PTI inputs)
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