AFG vs SL Match Prediction & Betting Tips - Oct 30, 2023
Sri Lanka and Afghanistan will contest the 30th match of the 2023 Cricket World Cup. Each team have two wins and three defeats this tournament - and both remain in contention for a semi-final berth.
The Sri Lankans will go into this match after all but eliminating reigning champions England from the competition. Afghanistan will be full of confidence after defeating Pakistan recently.
Let's see what the betting markets and cricket odds have in store for this key World Cup clash in Pune, India.
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan head-to-head record
Sri Lanka have four victories to Afghanistan's one in their last five ODI meetings. They met in the Asia Cup and a three-ODI series earlier this year. Overall, Sri Lanka have beaten Afghanistan seven times in this format of the international game - and Afghanistan have beaten Sri Lanka on three occasions.
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan live streaming and broadcast
This match and the rest of this year's Cricket World Cup will be available to watch on the Star Sports Network and their Disney+ Hotstar streaming app in India. The tournament is also being broadcast on free-to-air channels by Doordarshan in India.
AFG vs SL Team Previews
Afghanistan
Afghanistan's campaign started with defeats to Bangladesh and India, before upsetting England and Pakistan, with another loss to New Zealand in between. Now they have the chance to outplay opposition they have already played against a lot this year.
Openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran are Afghanistan's leading run-scorers at this World Cup. Gurbaz has collected 224 to Zadran's 173. They shared century partnerships against England and Pakistan and, again, could be instrumental at the top of the order for Afghanistan.
Seamer Naveen-ul-Haq and spinner Rashid Khan are Afghanistan's top wicket-takers at the tournament. They have six each. Spinner Noor Ahmad played his first match of the 2023 Cricket World Cup recently and took three wickets. He will likely retain his place in the XI as Afghanistan's tactics centre heavily around spin.
Afghanistan are evidently a more composed unit than previously. They will need all this composure against Sri Lankan opposition buoyed by their major victory against England. Afghanistan's bowlers, in particular, should be challenged by a combative Sri Lankan batting order.
Afghanistan Playing 11
Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Rahmat Shah, Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen ul Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka have managed to shake off three consecutive defeats to South Africa, Pakistan and Australia by beating the Netherlands and England in succession. This has moved them from the foot of the points table to a top six position - and boosted their ambition of finishing among the top four.
The Sri Lankans already have three batters with 200-plus runs each in the tournament. Middle-order batter Sadeera Samarawickrama is their leading run-scorer with 295 in five innings for an average of 98.33. He will go into this fixture with back-to-back half-centuries - and hit a ton against Pakistan earlier in the tournament.
Bowling-wise, Dilshan Madushanka has been a standout performer for Sri Lanka. He has taken 11 wickets in five matches this tournament. That haul includes four against the Netherlands and three versus Australia. Averaging more than two wickets per match in ODI cricket is an impressive feat.
Sri Lanka will be without the injured Matheesha Pathirana for this match and the rest of the tournament. Replacement player Angelo Mathews is a solid addition to the squad and XI, though. The former captain and experienced all-rounder should continue to add value to the unit.
Sri Lanka Playing 11
Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Angelo Mathews, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka.
AFG vs SL Toss Prediction
Pune has hosted eight ODIs. Four were won by the team batting first and four by the team batting second. Two of the last three ODIs here were won by the team batting second.
All the last five matches at the 2023 Cricket World Cup have seen the toss-winning captain choose to bat first. The same is likely in Pune. That said, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka's most recent victories came batting second.
Read our guide on toss predictions to learn how we analyze and come up with our tips.
Pitch and Conditions
This will be the first of five 2023 Cricket World Cup match played in Pune. The last five first-innings totals in ODI cricket at this venue were 256, 329, 336, 317 and 283. This is a relatively high-scoring ground, but not as high as some others around India.
Teams were only bowled out three times in the last 10 ODI innings here. It can be well worth playing at least two specialist spinners at this venue. Both Sri Lanka and Afghanistan might deploy as many as three each.
No rain is predicted for the days leading into this match. There is no wet weather forecast for matchday, too. Temperature and humidity levels will be characteristically hot and sweaty in Pune.
AFG vs SL Betting Tips
Sri Lanka have found significant momentum, especially after outdoing 2019 Cricket World Cup champions England recently. They have a strong record against Afghanistan in ODI cricket and should win this match, especially if Samarawickrama and Madushanka fire.
Sri Lanka are priced as favourites at 1.59 to win this match. Afghanistan are offered as 2.38 underdogs.
Bonus Cricket Bets
Khan is Afghanistan's joint-leading wicket-taker at this tournament. His last three ODIs against Sri Lanka have yielded six wickets. Conditions should suit his leg-spin.
Samarawickrama is Sri Lanka's top run-scorer in this year's World Cup. His 65 not out against England recently was key to victory. Samarawickrama is one of his country's best players of spin, too.
With 11 wickets to show for his last five ODIs, Madushanka is in fine form. He is among the best left-arm seamers at this tournament. Madushanka's extra pace and carry could really trouble the opposition batters.
Who will win AFG vs SL
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