T20 World Cup, Afghanistan vs England: Buttler elects to field
A belligerent-looking England will cross swords with Afghanistan in the second match of the Super 12 in the ICC T20 World Cup on Saturday. Jos Buttler-led England lately overcame Australia 2-0 in the three-match series. As for Afghanistan, they will hope to build on from their impressive show at the Asia Cup 2022. England skipper Buttler has won the toss and will field first.
Pitch report, timing, and broadcast details
The match will take place at the Perth Stadium The venue has hosted two T20Is, with the chasing side winning in one of those instances. It's a fairly high-scoring ground, given both England and Australia touched 200 in a fixture earlier this month. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network and live-streamed on the Hotstar app (4:30 PM IST).
Here's the head-to-head record
England command a perfect 2-0 record over the Afghans. Their maiden meet was during the 2012 T20 WC, with the Three Lions seizing a 116-run win. Luke Wright top-scored with a 55-ball 99*, piloting England to 196/5. Later, England folded Afghanistan on 80. Their second and final meeting was during the 2016 edition, with the then-Eoin Morgan-led side doling out a 15-run triumph.
Who are the key performers?
Buttler has amassed 2,377 runs at an average of 33.95. England speedster Mark Wood has claimed nine T20I scalps in four matches this year at 8.66. Mujeeb Ur Rahman has claimed 45 scalps at 16.57. Leg-spinner Rashid Khan has snapped up 118 wickets in 71 matches, averaging 14.21. Najibullah Zadran has smashed 1,559 runs at 32.47, striking at 142.89.
England's playing XI versus the Afghans
England Playing XI: Jos Buttler (wk/c), Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
Here's the playing XI of Afghanistan
Afghanistan Playing XI: Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Usman Ghani, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Fazalhaq Farooqi
