Skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and decided that India will bat first in their ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 match against Afghanistan on Saturday, June 22.
The match will begin at 9:30 AM GMT, 3:00 PM, 2:00 PM AFT. The match is been held at the Hampshire Bowl in Southampton.Â
Head to head
India and Afghanistan have faced twice in ODIs before this match. Both the times the matches were played during the Asia Cup. The first match in 2014 was won by India but Afghanistan managed to tie the second clash with India in Dubai in 2019. This is also the first time the teams will face each other in a World Cup match.
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India has made one change in their side from their previous match. Mohammad Shami has replaced Bhuvaneshwar Kunar in the side. Bhuvaneshwar suffered a slight niggle during Pakistan’s match. He didn’t bowl more than 3 overs in that match.
Mohammad Shami hasn’t played any match in this tournament so far. Other than this, India hasn’t made any changes to their side. Captain Kohli said the idea is bat first and put up a good score with the bat.
Team news:
Afghanistan made two changes in their side from their previous match against England. Aftab Alam replaced Dawlat Zadran, who was really expensive with the ball in that match. Hazratullah Zazai has also found a spot in the XI in place of Noor Ali Zadran. Surprisingly, Afghanistan retained all their three spinners, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rehman.
India would be batting on a pitch which seems like a really good batting wicket. If India can play out the initial few overs, India will surely be able to put up a good score on the board. The weather is fantastic with bright sunshine and close to zero chances of rain in Southampton.
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