Afghanistan Tour of Sri Lanka 2022: Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan – 1st ODI Preview and Updates

Cricket

The T20I World Cup has concluded! And the teams have begun to prepare for the ODI World Cup, which will be held next year. On the road to direct qualification, Sri Lanka will host Afghanistan in a three-match One-Day International series. The first One-Day International (ODI) will begin at 2:30 p.m. on November 25th at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. Sri Lanka will play their first One-Day International (ODI) in 5 months.

Sri Lanka first faced Zimbabwe in a three-match series in January, followed by a five-match series against Australia in June. They won both series by scores of 2-1 and 3-2, respectively. However, Sri Lanka has yet to be included in the ICC World Cup 2023 direct qualification list. With 62 points, they are currently ranked tenth in the 2020-2023 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League.

Afghanistan is having a fantastic year in One-Day Internationals. They have won 7 of the 9 One-Day Internationals. They are in contention for direct qualification to the ICC World Cup and currently sit seventh in the points table with 100 points. The players to watch out for against Sri Lanka are Rahmat Shah (484 runs) and Rashid Khan (18 wickets).

This will be the first ODI between these two teams in three and a half years. They met in Cardiff during the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup. That game was won by Sri Lanka by 34 runs (D/L method).

The 1st ODI between Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan will take place on November 25th, 2022 at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele.

Match Details to Note

Match: Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan, 1st ODI, Afghanistan Tour of Sri Lanka 2022

Date: November 25, 2022 (Friday)

Time: 2:30 PM IST

Venue: Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan

Sri Lanka (Match Odds – 1.45):

Preview:

What a whirlwind of events the Lankan team has experienced in the last few weeks. The T20I World Cup exit was followed by Danushka Gunathilaka’s arrest on sexual assault charges. They have yet to announce their ODI squad at this time. Dasun Shanaka, the Sri Lankan captain, will struggle to adjust to the new dynamics. With Gunathilaka out, Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis will most likely open the batting for Lanka. Nissanka leads the team in run scoring this season, with 368 runs at an average of 47. Nissanka has one century and three half-centuries in her last eight innings. He is our pick for the best batter.

This year, Kusal Mendis effectively led the Sri Lankan batting attack against Australia. Mendis finished with 249 runs and continued his form in the T20 World Cup by finishing in the top five run scorers. Mendis and Nissanka will both determine the outcome for Sri Lanka’s chances of gaining direct qualification for the upcoming World Cup. The middle order for Sri Lanka will be led by Charith Asalanka, C Karunaratne, and skipper Dasun Shanaka. In the last eight innings, Asalanka has scored 333 runs. However, Karunaratne and Shanaka are averaging less than 30 points per game this season. Karunaratne is making up for his batting struggles with the ball. He has 10 wickets this year with a 5.80 economy.

With Wanindu Hasaranga, leg spinner Jeffrey Vandersay will lead the bowling attack. In Hasaranga’s absence, Vandersay is their leading wicket-taker with 14 wickets in 7 innings, all on home soil. The pacers are Sri Lanka’s main issue. The pacers’ inability to take wickets may come back to haunt them in this series. Dunith Wellalage may be rested enough to face Maheesh Theekshana.

Full Squad:

Dasun Shanaka (c), Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dinesh Chandimal, Ashen Bandara, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Dananjaya Lakshan, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara, Pramod Madushan and Asitha Fernando

Players to watch out for:

Pathum Nissanka

The 24-year-old right-handed opener has already scored three ODI half-centuries at this venue this year, as well as his first ODI century in June.

Kusal Mendis

The 27-year-old keeper-batter has nine international centuries, two of which have come in this format. In mid-June, he batted 86 not out against Australia in Pallekele.

Wanindu Hasaranga

The bowling all-rounder took the most wickets in the 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cups. On this surface, he’ll have plenty of turn.

Possible Playing XI:

Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (wk), Charith Asalanka, Dinesh Chandimal, Dasun Shanaka (c), Dunith Wellalage, Chamika Karunaratne, Jeffrey Vandersay, Pramod Madushan, Maheesh Theekshana, Dhananjaya de

Afghanistan (Match Odds – 2.75):

Preview:

After failing to qualify for the T20 World Cup, Afghanistan’s skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi will continue to lead the ODI team. Rahmanullah Gurbaz will bat first, followed by Ibrahim Zadran. Gurbaz has 276 runs in 9 innings this year, while Zadran has averaged 51 in 4 of the 9 ODIs he has played this year. Afghanistan will start their leading run-scorer of the year, Rahmat Shah, at number three (our choice for the top batter). Shah has scored 484 runs in nine innings, including four half-centuries.

In the middle order, Shah will be supported by his captain. Shahidi has 317 runs in the middle with an average of 40. Najibullah Zadran and Mohammad Nabi will be crucial in the middle order. This season, Zadran has a 46.80 average while scoring 234 runs. Nabi, who recently stepped down as Afghanistan’s T20I captain, has 10 wickets this season at an economy rate of 3.39, the best in the Afghan bowling attack.

The bowling unit will be led by Rashid Khan, Fazallah Farooqi, and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Rashid Khan, as usual, is their top wicket-taker, with 18 wickets at a 4.07 economy rate. Afghanistan’s bowling attack has been the most economical this year, with runs falling below 4.7 in every over. Noor Ahmad, a left-arm wrist spinner, has received his first call. Noor drew attention when he returned with four wickets for ten runs on his T20I debut.

Full Squad:

Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Najibullah Zadran, Shahidullah Kamal, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Zia ur Rahman Akbar, Noor Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Farid Ahmad, Yamin Ahmadzai, Nijat Masoud, Azmatullah Omarzai, Qais Ahmad, Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, Abdul Rahman, Sharafuddin Ashraf and Baheer Shah Mahboob

Players to watch out for:

Hashmatullah Shahidi

The left-handed captain has a Test Match double-century to his name and will be rejuvenated after being left out of the T20 World Cup in Australia.

Mohammad Nabi

The experienced all-rounder can contribute with both the bat and the ball. He has a strong track record in white ball internationals and will be an important player for his team in Pallekele.

Rashid Khan

Across all formats, the leg-spinner remains Afghanistan’s main wicket-taking threat. He has an ODI average of 18.65 and is a very useful

Possible Playing XI:

Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmat Shah (vice-capt), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Najibullah Zadran, Noor Ahmad, Rashid Khan

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Top Team Batsmen

Our batting picks for Sri Lanka are Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, and Charith Asalanka. Mendis is the bookies’ favorite to top score and has a string of high scores in white ball cricket over the last six months. In this format, Asalanka has a century and five 50s.

With the bat, we recommend Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Hashmatullah Shahidi, and Ibrahim Zadran for Afghanistan. Gurbaz has the best odds with bookmakers and has three centuries in 12 One-Day Internationals. In one-day internationals, Zadran has a best score of 121 not out.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Top Team Bowlers

Sri Lanka’s top bowlers are Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, and Pramod Madushan. Hasaranga is the betting favorite to take the most wickets, and he rarely goes wicketless in any format. Theekshana has the best format figures of 4-37.

Our bowling picks for Afghanistan are Rashid Khan, Fazalhaq Farooqi, and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. The bookmakers have Khan as the favorite, and he will turn the ball a lot at this venue. Farooqi bowls with good pace and has never gone wicketless in seven One-Day Internationals.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Head to Head

This will be the fifth ODI between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, with Sri Lanka leading the series 3-1. Afghanistan’s sole victory came in September of 2018.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Head to Head Stats in ODIs

	Matches Played	SL Won	AFG Won	Tie	NR
Overall	4	3	1	0	0
Last 5	4	3	1	0	0

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Toss Prediction

The results of the 33 ODIS have favored the team bowling first. The team chasing the target has achieved 19 outcomes. Surprisingly, the average first innings score is 44 runs higher than the average second innings score, bringing us to the statistic that the team setting the target has won 3 of the last 4 games and 7 of the last 10. The team that wins the toss bats first.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Pitch Report

The first T20I of the series between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan will be played on November 25th at 2:30 pm at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. The venue has a capacity of 35000 spectators and has previously hosted 9 Tests, 33 ODIs, and 23 T20Is.

Cloudy skies are expected throughout the day, with thunderstorms possible. The temperature will be between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius. The wind will be blowing at 1-5 km/h from the west. Because the pitch is ideal for spinners, both teams have more spinners available. The pitch contributes to a better turn in the second inning.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Prediction

In the 50-over format of the game, both teams have a good run. However, Sri Lanka has an advantage at home. This year, they have won both ODI series played at home. They fared better than Afghanistan in the T20I World Cup. Aside from that, Lanka has won three of four One-Day Internationals (ODIs) against Afghanistan. Check out the odds at Cricbaba!

Sri Lanka is the favourite to beat Afghanistan at the odds of 1.45.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Most Recommended Player for Bet:

Pathum Nissanka scored 67 runs off 45 balls in his last international appearance and has been in good form this year. Our pick for Sri Lanka’s leading run-scorer in this match is the right-hander.

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