Brimming with confidence after securing two consecutive victories in the 2023 ODI World Cup, Sri Lanka will face Afghanistan at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Monday. Having secured two wins from their five matches thus far, both Sri Lanka and Afghanistan have maintained a glimmer of hope for advancing to the semifinals. However, one more loss, and their prospects will diminish. Afghanistan have made headlines with surprising victories over England and Pakistan, and they will now aim to disrupt Sri Lanka’s momentum to continue their remarkable journey in the competition.
Sri Lanka come into this game on the back of an eight-wicket win over England. Their bowlers were absolutely brilliant to have bowled out the defending champions for only 156 runs in 33.2 overs. Lahiru Kumara, who was also named the Player of the Match, picked up three wickets. Later in the game, the Sri Lankan batsmen chased down the target in 25.4 overs. Pathum Nissanka scored an unbeaten 77.
Like Sri Lanka, Afghanistan also come into this contest on the back of an eight-wicket win, which came over Pakistan. Noor Ahmed and Naveen ul Haq shone with the ball, picking up five wickets each. Chasing 283 to win, Afghanistan were helped by a half century each from Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah.
Ahead of the next game of Cricket World Cup 2023, here is everything you need to know.
England vs Sri Lanka injury update
For Afghanistan, Fazalhaq Farooqi may come back into the XI in place of Noor Ahmed. For Sri Lanka, Lahiru Kumara has been ruled of the match due to an injury.
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka predicted XI
Afghanistan: 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz, 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), 5 Azmatullah Omarzai, 6 Ikram Alikhil (wk), 7 Mohammad Nabi, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Naveen-ul-Haq, 11 Fazalhaq Farooqi
Sri Lanka: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Perera/Dimuth Karunaratne, 3 Kusal Mendis (capt, wk) 4 Sadeera Samarawickrama, 5 Charith Asalanka, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Angelo Mathews 8 Maheesh Theekshana, 9 Kasun Rajitha, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Dilshan Madushanka
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka Match Details
Match: Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka
Date & Time: October 30, 2.00 PM IST
Venue: Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka Fantasy Team
Wicket-Keepers: Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama
Batters: Ibrahim Zadran, Pathum Nissanka, Hashmatullah Shahidi
All-rounders: Mohammad Nabi, Angelo Mathews
Bowlers: Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka
Captain: Kusal Mendis
Vice-captain: Pathum Nissanka
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka: Pune Weather and Pitch Report
Expect a high-scoring game at the MCA Stadium. From the eight ODIs played at this venue, the average score reads 300. Four matches were won by the teams batting first, while another four batting second.
The weather in Pune will be warm during the day with a maximum temperature of 31 degrees Celsius. Evening will be pleasant. Rain is not forecast.
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka, 2023 World Cup Broadcast details
The match between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka will be live on the Star Sports network as far as TV is concerned.
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka Live Streaming
Disney + Hotstar has picked up streaming rights of the Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka match. The toss will take place at 1.30 PM IST.
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka ODI matches Head-to-Head
| Matches Played | 11 |
| Matches won by Afghanistan | 3 |
| Matches won by Sri Lanka | 7 |
| No Result | 1 |
| Matches Tied | 0 |
Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka match prediction
Both teams have blown hot and cold in the tournament but both have proved that they can challenge the best of teams on their day. For this match, we predict Sri Lanka to go all the way.
