T20 World Cup 2021: Afghanistan's probable playing XI against Pakistan

Afghanistan is all set to face Pakistan in the upcoming encounter at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday. Afghanistan won the first match against Scotland by a huge margin of 130 runs.

The batters have done enough damage and with the ball, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Rashid Khan have cleared the way for Afghanistan to register their first win in the tournament. So, let's have a look at the probable xi of Afghanistan against Pakistan. 

Openers:

Hazratullah Zazai & Mohammad Shahzad (wk)

The left-handed batsman Hazratullah Zazai will open the innings for Afghanistan along with Mohammad Shahzad. He scored 44 runs in the first match against Scotland which includes 3 fours and 3 sixes.

Mohammad Shahzad will do his duties from the other end. The wicket-keeper batsman got a good start to his innings but failed to convert it to a big one.

Middle-order:

Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Asghar Afghan and Gulbadin Naib

Rahmanullah Gurbaz will continue to bat at no.3 for Afghanistan in the upcoming match as well. He scored 46 runs in his last outing which included a boundary and 4 sixes to his name.

Najibullah Zadran will look to accelerate the run rate in the middle overs of the match. Having a look at his previous match performance, Najibullah Zadran remained unbeaten on 59 off 34 balls at a strike rate of 173.52.

Asghar Afghan and Gulbadin Naib will be the other players who can play crucial innings if the top-order fails. Both the batsmen have good numbers and would look to score runs if they get a chance to play.

All-rounders:

Mohammad Nabi & Rashid Khan

Mohammad Nabi will do the late hitting if needed. He can destroy the likes of the bowlers in the slog overs and can provide the breakthrough if the team needs it.

Rashid Khan is a bowling all-rounder who is handy with the bat as well. He went on to bag 4 wickets in the previous battle against Scotland and will look to do the same against Pakistan.

Bowlers: 

Karim Janat, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Naveen-ul-Haq

Karim Janat is a talented bowler and can go through the batting lineup once he gets a good flow with the ball. However, he didn't get enough opportunity in the last match against Scotland.

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Another talented spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman is known for his wicket-taking abilities in the powerplay overs. He bagged 5 wickets against Scotland in the first match and is expected to showcase the same in the upcoming match.

Naveen-ul-Haq will be the leading pacer for Afghanistan in the upcoming match against Pakistan. He bowled 2 overs in his last outing and got a wicket under his belt.