Afghanistan Times
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Kabul: Pakistan will look to head into the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup in Australia with winning momentum by their side as they prepare to face rivals Afghanistan in their final warm-up match of the tournament. Pakistan will take on Afghanistan at the Gabba in Brisbane on Wednesday, hours ahead of India’s warm-up match against New Zealand.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have had some heated contests in the past, which includes the Super 4 stage of the Asia Cup earlier this year with Afghanistan’s Fareed Ahmed and Pakistan’s Asif Ali nearly exchanging blows on the field in a last-over thriller.
The warm-up match is unlikely to be played with such fervor as both teams will be focused on getting their combination right in the lead-up to the Super 12 stage.
Pakistan’s under-performing middle-order will look to come to the party against Afghanistan and head into the clash against India with some confidence.
Pakistan’s bowling is one of their strong points but the manner in which England batters took it to the cleaners would have been alarming. Shaheen Afridi, who was playing his first competitive match after returning from an injury, will look to bowl more than what he did against England (2 overs) as he would want to be in good rhythm ahead of the India clash.
On the other hand, Afghanistan would have taken confidence from their comprehensive 62-run win over Bangladesh in their first warm-up match. A win against Pakistan, albeit in a warm-up match, will only boost their confidence further as they prepare for their Super 12 opener against England on October 22.
