Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi won the toss and chose to bat against New Zealand in a Twenty20 World Cup match on Sunday that could determine the final semi-finalist from Group 2.
If New Zealand wins in Abu Dhabi, they will advance to the final four, but a loss will benefit Afghanistan and India, who have the best run rate in the group, and play Namibia in their final match on Monday.
Afghanistan made one change from their loss to India, with Mujeeb Ur Rahman returning to the XI.
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“It’s a day game, so we want to put up a good total,” Nabi explained.
With a billion Indians rooting for Afghanistan to win, Nabi insisted his team will “try to win” the match.
New Zealand’s lineup remains unchanged from their previous victory, their third in a row following their opening loss to Pakistan, who has already advanced to the semi-finals from this group.
At the toss, captain Kane Williamson said, “We were going to have a bat as well, it’s a used surface.”
“I believe both teams have match-winners, with a mix of youth and experience.”
England and Australia have qualified for the semi-finals from Group 1.
Teams
New Zealand:
Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Kane Williamson (capt), Devon Conway (wk), Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Trent Boult
Afghanistan:
Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi (capt), Karim Janat, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (SRI), Langton Rusere (ZIM)
TV Umpire: Richard Illingworth (ENG)
Match Referee: Javagal Srinath (IND)
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