AFG vs IRE Match Preview
Hashmatullah Shahidi is leading the Afghanistan men's team in this contest. He will also have the responsibility of handling the top order against Ireland. In this contest, other significant top-order batters for the Afghans are Abdul Malik, Bashir Shah, and Noor Ali Zadran. The Afghanistan middle order will be in the hands of Nasir Jamal and all-rounders such as Rahmat Shah. The wicketkeeper batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz will also be relied upon to get some runs for his side. These are the top batters for Afghanistan in this contest.
Khalil Gurbaz, Mohammad Ibrahim, Nijat Masood, and Zahir Khan will handle the bowling attack. There are also some good all-rounders in the Afghanistan line-up, such as Rahmat Shah, Zia-ur-Rahman, and Ikram Alikhil. These all-rounders will have a crucial role to play with both bat and ball for Afghanistan. These are the top Afghanistan players the team management will look at to get them quick runs and vital wickets. You can bet on them to do well in this game.
Their skipper, Andy Balbirnie, will lead the Ireland batting charge in this game. The responsibility of handling the top order will be in the hands of James McCollum. Other significant batters for Ireland are Paul Stirling and the other all-rounders. The last and only test between the two teams was played way back in 2019, and just the five members of that team are retained by Ireland. Matthew Foster is all set to make his international debut in this contest for Ireland. This young seamer plays for Northern Knights in Ireland.
Some other players likely to get capped for Ireland include Theo van Woerkom, Craig Young, and Barry McCarthy. The Irish team inflicted a clean sweep on Zimbabwe in December in the T20I and ODI series. The Irishmen have played a lot of cricket around this area in the last decade. So, they will be reasonably attuned to the conditions. Better than what you think. Although they haven’t played cricket for three months, they will likely be in a more confident frame of mind for this game.
Weather Report
We are expecting nice and sunny conditions for this test. The weather will be clear and calm during this contest. The temperatures during the test match will hover close to 20 degrees. Getting showers during this contest is possible, but it is unlikely to affect the game too much.
Pitch Report
This Abu Dhabi wicket is a high-scoring one. But as the game progresses, we will have spinners coming to the fore. It will be better for the skipper to bat first after winning the toss and take advantage of the wicket, offering help to the spinners later.
Notable stats
Lorcan Tucker has a good batting average in recent games for Ireland.
Lorcan Tucker has scored 351 runs in his last four innings with an average of 43.88.
Nijat Masood has an excellent strike rate with the ball for Afghanistan.
Nijat Masood has picked up seven scalps from his last two games for Afghanistan with a strike rate of 42.14.
Team News
This is the first and only test match of the series. So, there are no injury worries for this contest.
AFG vs IRE Probable 11
AFG Playing 11
- Ibrahim Zadran
- Noor Ali Zadran
- Rahmat Shah
- Hashmatullah Shahidi (C)
- Nasir Jamal
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Wk)
- Qais Ahmad
- Zia-ur-Rehman
- Nijat Masood
- Naveed Zadran
- Mohammad Saleem
IRE Playing 11
- James McCollum
- Peter Moor
- Andy Balbirnie (C)
- Harry Tector
- Paul Stirling
- Lorcan Tucker (Wk)
- Curtis Campher
- Andy McBrine
- Mark Adair
- Fionn Hand
- Graham Hume
Dream11 Prediction
Both these teams are heading into this game on the back of an atrocious record in tests in the recent games. However, the Afghanistan team will be more attuned to the conditions on offer as they play close to their home conditions. S, we will bet with Afghanistan to win this contest.
Top Picks
Rahmat Shah: Rahmat Shah has scored 569 runs in his last eight appearances for Afghanistan with an average of 35.56.
Nijat Masood: Masood has picked up seven wickets from his last two matches with a strike rate 42.14.
Lorcan Tucker: This wicketkeeper batter has scored 351 runs from his last four tests with an average of 43.88.
Harry Tector: Tector has done an excellent job with the bat for Ireland, with an average of 42 in his last four games.
AFG vs IRE Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: L Tucker , R Gurbaz (VC)
Batters: H Shahidi, A Balbirnie, H Tector, I Zadran
All-rounders: R Shah (C), K Janat, C Campher
Bowlers: M Adair, Z Khan
