AFG vs PAK 3rd ODI Match Prediction

AFG vs PAK Team Previews

Afghanistan

Afghanistan got most things right in this second match, but they weren’t able to handle the nerves and let the match slip away in the very last over. However, the team will look at the positives and put up an even better performance.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz was in scintillating form, scoring a career-best 151 runs as he forged a 227-run partnership with Ibrahim Zadran. The latter too played well for his 80 runs. Afghanistan will be hoping that the opening pair continues to play similarly during the upcoming weeks too.

They will however be a bit disappointed with the middle-order batting as the batsmen failed to capitalize on the good start and put up a match-winning score. There are some capable batsmen including Mohammad Nabi, Hashmatullah Shahidi, and Shahidullah Kamal who can play much better.

The spinners bowled well to keep the pressure on the Pakistani batsmen, but the seamers, especially Abdul Rahman, were quite expensive and in the end, Afghanistan failed to cross the line. 

The odds do not justify the amount of improvement that Afghanistan has made as a team. They pushed a full-strength Pakistan team close in both matches and cannot be written off any more. 

Pakistan

Pakistan convincingly won the opening match but escaped by a whisker in the 2nd one. Nevertheless, it is still a victory and the team will look to end this tour with a clean slate, especially as it prepares for the upcoming Asia Cup.

Fakhar Zaman and Imam Ul-Haq gave the team a solid start as they chased a stiff target.  Imam slammed a second consecutive half-century and went on to make 91 runs, which is his highest total this year. He will be the key batsman once again along with Babar Azam.

The form of the middle-order batsmen is a bit of a concern as they haven’t batted well on this trip. With two major tournaments coming up, the team will need the duo to get some runs under their belt. The seam bowlers, who were lethal in the opening fixture, appeared clueless in this match, especially with the new ball.

Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah did manage to pull things back a bit during the death overs. Shadab Khan was wicketless but was quite economical. He also did an excellent job with the bat, to see his team through in a close finish. 

Pakistan's ODI is well-balanced and its depth in batting is a massive plus. The bowling may not have had a good outing in the previous match but they are capable of absolutely destroying the Afghan batting on their day, as we saw in the first match.