AFG vs IRE Match Preview
The loss in the solitary test match against Ireland would have come as a bit of a shock to the Afghanistan supporters. Hashmatullah Shahidi will lead the Afghanistan side for the ODI series. They have players such as Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, and Mohammad Nabi available to them. The crucial spinner Rashid Khan is still unavailable to the Afghan team, and they are also missing the services of Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Another reason for worry is that Gurbaz has been out of touch for a while now.
However, Gurbaz looked like he was returning to his best form in the last series against the Lankans. This series will be a good opportunity for the batter to regain form. Ibrahim Zadran has done well for Afghanistan. He has scored runs in all the different formats of the game for Afghanistan. He also has a good record against Irishmen and has troubled them consistently. He will be a significant threat again for Irishmen. The last time Afghanistan played an ODI series was against Sri Lanka. They ended up losing by a margin of 3-0.
We found no significant surprises when the Irish side for the ODI series was declared. All their big guns, such as Andrew Balbirnie, Paul Stirling, and Harry Tector, are on the team. This squad looks similar to what we received for the ODI series against Zimbabweans. Harry Tector has a terrific average in one-day international format. His average of 48 tells you his importance for the Ireland middle order. He is widely accepted as the biggest match-winner for Irishmen in white ball cricket.
Harry Tector adds solidity to the Irish middle order. Mark Adair will lead the bowling attack for Ireland in the ODI series. The fast-medium bowler put up a man-of-the-match performance in the standalone test match. He picked up a haul of eight wickets in this game. He will be keen to take this good form in the one-day internationals and take his side to a series win. The Irish team played their last bilateral series against Zimbabwe. They managed to win this series by a margin of 2-0.
Weather Report
The weather for this game between Afghanistan and Ireland is likely to be sunny and pleasant. There is a good chance we will get a cloud cover, though. This can help the quicks. However, there is no chance of getting rain. That apart, we will not get any help for the bowlers from the weather.
Pitch Report
The Sharjah Cricket Stadium venue has smallish boundaries, which makes it a big-scoring ground. However, the surface on offer does not favor batters. Bowlers will get assistance from the track. The wicket gradually becomes tougher to bat on as the game progresses.
Notable stats
Azmatullah Omarzai has had a terrific average in recent games for Afghanistan.
Omarzai has scored runs with an average of 95 in his last ten games for Afghans.
Curtis Campher has an excellent batting average for Ireland in ODI format.
Curtis Campher has scored runs with an average of 56.67 in his last ten appearances for Ireland.
Team News
As this is the first game of the series, injuries have yet to occur. So, all the team members are likely to be up for selection tomorrow.
AFG vs IRE Probable 11
AFG Playing 11
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Wk)
- Ibrahim Zadran
- Rahmat Shah
- Hashmatullah Shahidi (C)
- Azmatullah Omarzai
- Mohammad Nabi
- Ikram Akhil
- Noor Ahmad
- Qais Ahmad
- Fareed Ahmad
- Fazalhaq Farooqi
IRE Playing 11
- Paul Stirling (C)
- Andrew Balbirnie
- Curtis Campher
- Harry Tector
- Lorcan Tucker (Wk)
- George Dockrell
- Mark Adair
- Andy McBrine
- Craig Young
- Graham Hume
- Theo van Woerkom
Dream11 Prediction
Even though Ireland managed to win the test match played earlier in their visit to UAE, the ODIs are a different ball game. The Afghans have an excellent line-up. You can expect them to perform better in this series. We will bet with Afghanis to win this opening contest and take an early lead in the series.
Top Picks
Azmatullah Omarzai: This Afghan batter has run in a purple patch in the ODI format. He has amassed 475 runs in his last ten games with a strike rate of 105.08 and an incredible average of 95. He has also done well with the ball.
Craig Young: Craig Young has taken 13 wickets in his last seven games, with a strike rate of 22.61.
Curtis Campher: Campher has scored 340 runs in his last ten games with an average of 56.67.
Mark Adair: This pacer from Ireland has picked up 13 victims from his last ten appearances for Ireland.
AFG vs IRE Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: R Gurbaz
Batters: H Shahidi, A Balbirnie, H Tector, I Zadran
All-rounders: M Nabi, A Omarzai (C), C Campher (VC)
Bowlers: C Young, M Adair, F Farooqi
