Live Updates
-
FOUR! What a way to get off the mark when your team is four down. The 2 centurions from the last match are in the middle now. These are the 2 wickets Afghans should aim for at the moment.
-
The run flowing from one end will allow Evrin to take his time to settle down. He has scored 6 off 18 balls.
-
Taylor is playing a good hand here, he needs to be there till the end. The partnership is already 31 in 5.2 overs.
-
In the last match Zimbabwe had scored 87 in the Powerplay, in today’s match they have made only 24 with the loss of 3 wickets. Mujeeb Ur Rehman who did not play the last match bowled a maiden 9th over in the match.
-
The first boundary has been hit in the 8th over of the match. This shows how well the Afghan bowlers have bowled. Craig Ervine who was finding it difficult to score quick runs should use this situation to great effect. The important thing for Zimbabwe here is stitching partnership with Taylor at one end.
-
Masakadza fails again as Mujeeb Ur Rahman bowls him out on 3. Zimbabwe in big trouble, they are 3 down already in the Powerplay.
-
The opening pair in the last match had added 77 in 7.1 overs. Mujeeb and Zadran have got them out very cheaply in this match. Taylor would be an important wicket here for Afghans. He would be very confident with a century in the last match against Nepal.
-
The Afghans have made a dream start picking up 2 early wickets that too of Mire and Zhuwao who got Zimbabwe to a flyer in their previous match.
-
Afghanistan XI: R Shah, M Nabi, M Shahzad (wk), D Zadran, Ihsanullah, R Khan*, N Jamal, S Ashraf, M Ur Rahman, N Zadran, S Zadran
-
Zimbabwe XI: C Zhuwao, S Mire, H Masakadza, B Taylor (wk), C Ervine, S Raza, M Waller, G Cremer (c), B Vitori, T Chatara, B Muzarabani
Hello and welcome to CricketCountry’s live coverage of ICC World Cup Qualifiers 2018. Match 7 of the tournament will see Afghanistan take on Zimbabwe at Bulawayo. Afghanistan were left stunned by Scotland on Sunday when Calum Macleod’s unbeaten 146-ball 157 threw Group B open on the opening day. Zimbabwe, on the other hand, had an easy win over Nepal. All Zimbabwe will hope on Tuesday is to capitalise early on the wounds of Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Rashid Khan and co. will aim to recover from the stumble. They had seen off Zimbabwe 4-1 in the ODI series at Sharjah last month.
However, Zimbabwe have pressures of their own. Apart from being the home side, they have struggled with their form in ODIs in the recent past. Despite that, they managed to put up their best batting show against Nepal on Sunday. Sikandar Raza’s all-round performance — 66-ball 123 and 3 for 48 — propelled them to the top of the table. As for the conditions, clear skies are expected in Bulawayo on Tuesday and this tie should go ahead without any interruption. It was on this wicket that Zimbabwe had scored 380 and thrashed Nepal. A similar run-fest can be expected on Tuesday.
Squads:
Zimbabwe: Graeme Cremer (c), Brendan Taylor (wk), Tendai Chatara, Tendai Chisoro, Craig Ervine, Kyle Jarvis, Hamilton Masakadza, Solomon Mire, Peter Moor, Blessing Muzarabani, Sikandar Raza, Brian Vitori, Malcolm Waller, Sean Williams, Cephas Zhuwao.
Afghanistan: Rashid Khan (c), Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Javed Ahmadi, Ihsanullah Janat, Najibullah Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Samiullah Shenwari, Nasir Jamal, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Dawlat Zadran, Shapoor Zadran.