T20 World Cup 2021: Strongest XI of Afghanistan vs New Zealand

Afghanistan will be facing New Zealand in a must-win encounter as both teams conclude their Super 12 round at the T20 World Cup 2021. Afghanistan needs a win by a good enough margin to keep their hopes alive. They will also have a billion extra supporters for this game, as the Indian team needs them to beat the Kiwis so that they can have a chance. 

Afghanistan has won two of its four matches so far. They are coming into this game after a huge loss against India but that shouldn’t dampen their spirits. Mohammad Nabi and his team need just one more win and a good performance to create history in many ways.

For this important match, here is the predicted XI of Afghanistan: 

Openers (Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Shahzad)

The explosive opening combination will be a challenge for New Zealand bowling. The duo can take the attack to the opposition and also bat for long periods of time. They are quite capable of putting up a bright show after being out of touch in the last match against India. Zazai scored 13 in that game and has scored 90 runs in total in this tournament. 

Shahzad, on the other hand, has scored 75 runs which include his match-winning knock of 45 runs against Namibia in Abu Dhabi. Afghanistan will hope his bat fires, given how experienced he is in this format of the game. His return to the team has not been all fruitful but he definitely has an opportunity to change that in this game. 

Middle-order (Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Najibullah Zadran)

With the amount of talent which Rahmanullah Gurbaz possesses, it is hard to see how he hasn’t been able to score some big runs in this tournament. He had excelled on the UAE pitches, but maybe batting at no. 3 hasn’t suited him the best. Nevertheless, his tally currently stands at 79 runs from four innings and that is something he would look to change. 

Najibullah Zadran is another extremely talented batter in this team. He started off the tournament with an excellent 59 runs from 35 balls against Scotland. Since then, he has added only 40 runs in the next three innings, but once again he will have an opportunity to change his numbers. If he manages to get a good score in this game, something which his team needs from him. 

All-rounders (Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, and Karim Janat)

The strength of this Afghanistan team lies in the all-rounders’ department. Mohammad Nabi, their skipper, has also been their highest run-getter so far, with 113 runs. He has only been dismissed once in this tournament. With the ball, he has been a bit underwhelming, but he might find the right match-ups in this contest with two left-handers in the New Zealand middle order. 

Gulbadin has shown his true all-round capabilities with his 54 runs and 3 wickets so far. His numbers are pretty good and Afghanistan would hope nothing less from him. Then there is Karim Janat, who might seem like a weak link but manages to do enough to keep his place in the side. He played an impressive knock of 42 runs from 22 balls in the last match. 

Lastly, Afghanistan has Rashid Khan. The leg-spinner would be the most valuable asset against the New Zealand team and Nabi’s primary job would be to assess and use him properly. If Afghanistan goes in with an elongated bowling unit, Rashid’s batting power will also come into use, something which we haven’t seen enough in this tournament. 

Bowlers (Naveen-ul-Haq, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman)

The bowling department is something in which Afghanistan has a little bit of a conundrum. Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s injury has taken longer than one would have hoped, making him unavailable for the India game as well. If he is fit, he should come right back into this team. Now, Sharafuddin Ashraf was used as a third spinner in the last game, bowled only two overs. 

He came in for the retired Asghar Afghan and will be benched if Mujeeb recovers in time. If Afghanistan continues with that plan, then they can also have both their top-class pacers, Naveen-ul-Haq and Hamid Hassan. Neither of them had a good day against India but would be desperate to turn around that performance.