PAK-U19 vs AFG-U19 Match Prediction & Betting Tips - Jan 20, 2024
The 15th edition of the Under-19 Cricket World Cup is all set to begin this week in South Africa and Pakistan will take on Afghanistan for a Group D fixture on Saturday. The match will be played at the Buffalo Park Stadium in East London.
Pakistan vs Afghanistan head-to-head record
Both teams have faced each other in 10 ODIs to date. Pakistan has won 6 of those matches, while Afghanistan has ended on top in 4.
Pakistan vs Afghanistan Live-streaming and Broadcast
This match can be live-streamed on the Disney+ Hotstar App or can be watched live on the Star Sports Network.
PAK-U19 vs AFG-U19 Team Previews
Pakistan U19
The two-time champions finished a disappointing 5th in the last edition. As they begin a fresh campaign with a new set of players, Pakistan finds itself in one of the trickiest groups and will look to get an early advantage.
The team will be led by Saad Baig, who has enjoyed a good run with the bat recently and will be a vital cog in the middle-order batting. Shahzaib Khan and Ahmed Hussain are likely to open the batting. The duo got the team off to a solid start in the warm-up match against England and will look to put up a similar performance in this match.
The others in the batting line-up include Azan Awais and Riaz Ullah. Pakistan has produced some of the best seam bowlers in the past and the current crop of quick bowlers have the potential to be the same. All eyes will be on Ubais Shah, who is the younger brother of Pakistan international Naseem Shah.
The former will lead the pace attack alongside Amir Hasan, Mohammad Zeeshan, and Khubaib Khalil. The spin attack consists of Naveed Ahmed Khan, Arafat Minhas, and Shahzaib Khan.
Pakistan U19 Playing 11
Saad Baig, Shahzaib Khan, Azan Awais, Shamyl Hussain, Mohammad Riazullah , Arafat Minhas, Ali Asfand, Amir Hassan, Ubaid Shah, Mohammad Zeeshan, Ahmad Hassan.
Afghanistan U19
Afghanistan played some excellent cricket in the 2022 U19 edition and finished the tournament in 4th place, which was the joint-best performance by the team to date. The youngsters will now look to build up on that and try to get an even better outcome this time around.
Under the leadership of Jamshid Zadran, Afghanistan stunned England during the warm-up matches and that should give the team a big boost ahead of this key encounter. Hasan Eisakhil, who is veteran Mohammad Nabi’s son, is likely to open the batting for Afghanistan.
Eisakhil scored an impressive half-century against India last month and will look to put up a similar performance in this match. He will be joined by Usman Khan Shinwari, who is Rashid Khan’s nephew. Sohail Khan Zurmati and Numan Shah scored individual half-centuries in the warm-up match and will be the key players in the middle order.
Afghanistan has given the world some brilliant spinners and the U19 team features one more prodigy in the form of Allah Mohammad Ghaznafar. The 16-year-old has picked up 10 wickets in his last international games and will lead the spin department alongside Khalil Ahmed and Arab Gul.
The pace attack consists of Bashir Ahmad and Zahid Afghan.
Afghanistan U19 Playing 11
Naseer Khan, Noman Shah, Hassan Eisakhel, Wafiullah Tarakhil, Sohail Khan, Rahimullah Zurmati, Jamshid Zadran, Arab Gul, Allah Mohammad, Khalil Ahmad, Bashir Ahmad.
PAK-U19 vs AFG-U19 Toss Prediction
The team winning the toss will likely opt to bowl first.
Read our guide on toss predictions to learn how we analyze and come up with our tips.
Pitch and Conditions
The pitch at the Buffalo Park Stadium is balanced and provides for an even contest between the bat and the ball. The average first-inning score in ODIs on this ground is around 265. The seamers will get some swing with the new ball, while the spinners will be in action as the ball gets softer and older. Anything over 280 will be tricky to chase.
The temperature will remain around 25 degrees but we can expect plenty of breeze blowing through the stadium.
PAK-U19 vs AFG-U19 Betting Tips
Afghanistan has plenty of talented players but we feel that the Pakistan team start this match as the favorites to win. They have done well in the recent head-to-head encounters against Afghanistan. Pakistan has a better balance of players in their squad and that is a big positive.
Bet on Pakistan to win.
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Shahzaib Khan is a quality player who has enjoyed good form off late. He has scored at least 24 runs in 3 of his last 4 ODIs, with each of them being a half-century. We are expecting another good outing for him.
Pakistan has a well-balanced bowling attack, with a significantly stronger pace attack compared to Afghanistan. Since the pitch at Buffalo Park is helpful to the seamers, we are expecting Pakistan to produce the best bowling effort.
Who will win PAK-U19 vs AFG-U19
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Match Predictions
Cricket Betting Tips
- Highest opening partnership - India W (1.55) and 1 more BANW vs INDW betting tip
- Total runs in the highest scoring over of the match - Over 22.5 (1.95) and 2 more MI vs SRH betting tips
- Nazmul Hossain Shanto to become the top batter. - 4.10 and 3 more BAN vs ZIM betting tips
- Delhi Capitals to win the toss - 1.90 and 4 more DC vs RR betting tips
We are eager to know what you think of our match predictions, if there is anything we can do better or if you want to let us know your own predictions for the match.