Pronostics pour Afghanistan — Népal

A development side taking on an established full-strength line-up is always a tricky read. It becomes harder when the pitch offers substantial turn. Afghanistan's young group got the job done against Japan, but Nepal's experienced core presents a vastly different challenge.

Afghanistan's new generation

This is the AfghanAbdalyan squad, missing the familiar faces of Rashid Khan and Rahmanullah Gurbaz. Darwish Rasooli leads a young side, leaning heavily on the experience of Karim Janat and Najibullah Zadran. Mohammad Akram and Ismat Alam earned their spots after solid domestic campaigns (acb.af).

The top order found the moving ball difficult against Japan. Hassan Eisakhil struggled early, leaving Akram to steady the ship before the late order salvaged a respectable total. It was their bowling that impressed. Abdullah Ahmadzai challenged the openers before Arab Gul Momand and Nangeyalia Kharoti spun a web through the middle overs.

Expected XI: Mohammad Akram, Hassan Eisakhil, Karim Janat, Darwish Rasooli (c), Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Ishaq (wk), Ismat Alam, Abdullah Ahmadzai, Faridoon Dawoodzai, Nangeyalia Kharoti, Arab Gul Momand.

Nepal's familiar faces

Nepal arrived here after claiming a 50-over Premier Cup title. Dipendra Singh Airee captains a squad that welcomes back Sompal Kami and Kushal Bhurtel. Rohit Paudel is available, having avoided a playing suspension following his recent sanction (go.cricnepal.com).

The 50-over success is a decent confidence booster, but their semi-final highlighted a batting vulnerability that Airee had to rescue. The final showcased their resilience, with Aasif Sheikh anchoring the innings. Captain Airee will need his top order to survive Ahmadzai's opening spell and not rely entirely on their elite spin to bail them out.

Projected XI: Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh (wk), Rohit Paudel, Dipendra Singh Airee (c), Gulshan Jha, Kushal Malla, Sundeep Jora, Karan KC, Sompal Kami, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi.

Conditions in Nisshin

The Korogi Sports Park pitch offered early movement, low bounce and substantial turn on the first day. The boundary sizes remain somewhat unconfirmed, but a slow outfield is likely if the afternoon showers materialise (easeweather.com). Chasing a score under lights is unlikely, given the afternoon schedule.

The match-up

The market has priced this on reputation, favouring the Afghanistan brand. However, this is their 'A' side facing a battle-hardened Nepal team boasting Lamichhane and Rajbanshi on a gripping surface.

Afghanistan's batting struggled against Japan's seamers and will find Nepal's elite associate spinners even tougher to dispatch. The risk of rain reducing the overs adds further weight to a lower total.