T20 World Cup 2021: New Zealand vs Afghanistan: Where to watch; India’s fate in balance

Joining
India
in
praying
for
an
Afghan
victory
will
be
its
billion-plus
fans.
A
win
for
the
Kiwis
would
shut
India’s
hopes
of
advancing
to
the
last-four
as
it
would
take
them
to
eight
points,
putting
things
beyond
the
reach
of
Virat
Kohli’s
men.

If
Afghanistan
manage
to
turn
the
tables
on
Kane
Williamson
&
Co,
it
will
keep
alive
their
slim
chances
while
boosting
that
of
the
Indians
(on
4
points
currently),
who
would
need
to
win
their
last
match
against
Namibia
with
a
good
margin.

However,
if
the
Kiwis
secure
a
win,
India’s
final
league
game
on
Monday
(November
8)
against
Namibia
will
be
rendered
inconsequential.

New
Zealand
will
head
into
the
match
high
on
confidence
after
having
eased
to
victory
against
Namibia
on
Friday.

Jimmy
Neesham
and
Glenn
Phillips
rose
to
the
occasion
after
the
top-order
failed
to
fire
and
set
up
a
challenging
total
which
proved
too
much
for
the
Namibian
batters.

The
Kiwi
bowlers’ experience
and
skills
have
been
on
show
in
the
tournament
and
they
would
pose
problems
for
the
Afghan
batters
too
and
could
decide
the
fate
of
Sunday’s
contest.

The
Afghanistan
batters
have
come
up
with
consistent
performances
which
have
helped
the
spin-heavy
bowling
unit
go
about
their
job
with
confidence.

But
they
would
be
up
against
an
attack
that
includes
Trent
Boult,
Tim
Southee
and
the
pacy
Adam
Milne,
apart
from
the
spin
duo
of
Ish
Sodhi
and
Mitchell
Santner,
which
has
troubled
the
batters
right
through
the
tourney.

If
the
Afghan
batters
can
put
up
a
sizeable
score,
then
the
bowling
unit
with
Rashid
Khan
at
the
forefront
could
be
more
than
a
handful.

The
absence
of
Mujeeb-ur-Rahman
owing
to
injury
could
weaken
the
bowling
department
but
given
the
Kiwi
batters’
struggles
against
spin,
a
huge
task
awaits
them.

How
the
New
Zealand
batters
handle
the
middle
overs
when
star
spinner
Rashid
Khan
would
be
in
operation
would
have
a
huge
say
on
how
the
match
pans
out
and
a
good
start
by
the
powerful
Martin
Guptill
and
Daryl
Mitchell
could
prove
crucial
as
would
skipper
Williamson’s
contribution.

Though
New
Zealand
and
Afghanistan
battle
it
out
in
Abu
Dhabi,
India
in
Dubai
and
its
fans
will
be
praying
that
the
fellow
Asian
nation
does
it
a
favour
by
scripting
a
memorable
victory
to
see
their
chances
of
surviving
further
in
the
marquee
event.

Teams
(from):
Afghanistan:
Mohammed
Nabi
(captain),
Hazratullah
Zazai,
Ahmed
Shahzad,
Gulbadin
Naib,
Naveen
ul
Haq,
Rashid
Khan,
Hamid
Hasan,
Rahamnaullah
Gurbaz,
Najibullah
Zadran,
Karim
Janat,
Mujeeb
ur
Rahman,
Hashmatullah
Shahidi,
Fareed
Ahmed,
Usman
Ghani.

New
Zealand:
Kane
Williamson
(c),
Martin
Guptill,
Daryl
Mitchell,
Devon
Conway,
Tim
Seifert
(wk),
James
Neesham,
Glenn
Phillips,
Mitchell
Santner,
Ish
Sodhi,
Trent
Boult,
Tim
Southee,
Mark
Chapman,
Adam
Milne,
Kyle
Jamieson,
Todd
Astle.

Match
info

Match
date:
Sunday,
November
7

Match
starts
at
3.30
PM
IST

Live
telecast:
Star
Sports
Networks

Live
streaming:
Disney
+
HotStar