The inaugural match of the 2022 Asia Cup will be played between Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka on 28th August 2022. The game will be hosted by Dubai Cricket Stadium, which possesses a surface favorable for the slower side and quite difficult for stroke-making.
Afghanistan has come into this fixture after completing an unsuccessful tour of Ireland. Despite having a relatively highly experienced squad, the Afghans lost the 5-T20 match series against the Irish side. Their late performances are questionable, and the only way for Afghanistan to answer them positively is to win against the Islanders.
Meanwhile, the Lankan Lions are struggling to achieve those heights of cricketing glory they lose after the departure of legendary cricketers like Jayawardana, Sangakkara, and Muralidharan. The 5 times Asia Cup Lifters haven’t won the trophy again since 2014. Notably, the same opposition had thrown them out of 2018 Asia Cup run by defeating them in the group stage rounds.
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan 1st T20 Time, Date & Venue
Match: 1st T20 (T20 International)
Event: Asia Cup 2022
Teams: Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan
Time: 1:00 Local – 07:30 PST
Date: 27th August 2022
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan 1st T20 Live Streaming
The opening clash between Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan will be On-aired globally. According to details, Star Sports has acquired the Official Telecasting Rights for Asia Cup 2022 in India. However, the broadcasting services of the channel can be availed in other Subcontinent countries, including Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. Fox Sports will telecast SL vs Afg 1st T20 Live in Australia, while Sky Sports would be the reliable source to watch this game Live in the United Kingdom. Lemar TV, Channel 9, and Gazi TV will offer Asia Cup Live Telecasting services in Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, respectively.
- PTV Sports Live
- Willow TV Live
- Ten Sports Live
- Star Sports Live
All the matches of the Asia Cup can be watched on Android devices and Computers via Live Streaming and Digital Platforms. Hotstar is the Official Live Cricket Streaming app, owned and operated by Star Sports Network. The premium cricketing streaming services offered by Hotstar are available in various countries, including India, Pakistan, UAE, some European Countries, and North American countries. In addition, you can visit ESPNcricinfo to get Live Cricket Scores, a Ball by Ball Commentary, and an Updated Score card for this game.
- Crictime
- Smartcric
- CricHD
- Webcric
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan 1st T20 ODI Match Preview
Both teams have come playing after recalling their most experienced players. Afghanistan has the likes of Nabi, Rashid, and Najibullah Zadran, while Sri Lanka highly depends on Pathum Nissanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, and Wanindu Hasaranga.
As far as recent performances of Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are concerned, both sides are passing lean patches as the Islanders haven’t won a single T20 game in this calendar year, while the Afghans has faced defeat against Ireland.
Nevertheless, the playing duos hope to turn their fortune by winning the opening match of this event. The experienced Dasun Shanaka will lead Sri Lanka in this tournament, while Afghanistan will play under the captaincy of Mohammad Nabi.
In the batting department, Afghanistan has quality batters like Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Usman Ghani, and Najibullah Zadran. Among these batters, Najibullah Zadran will be the center of attraction for the Afghan side as he is the leading run-scorer in the team for the current year, and they all want him to continue his power show with Bat.
When it comes to Bowling variety, no other side could compete with the Afghans in spin attack. The team features top-ranked spinners like Rashid Khan, Majeeb, and Nabi, while their pace attack relies on Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen Ul Haq, and Noor Ahmad.
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan Today Match Prediction
Sri Lanka will hopefully confront Afghanistan with easy defeat. The Lankans have a strong pace attack, supported by quality batters and spin wizards. In contrast, Afghanistan lacks consistent performance, and if they overcome that issue, their chances of winning the match will increase by 60%.
Team Sri Lanka is wary of unprecedented performances of their opposition in the past. They better understand that the Afghan team could be lethal in a short format as they have ballistic T20 batters and a world-class Spin attack. Whatsoever, a tough competition is going to happen at Dubai Stadium.
Pitch Conditions & Toss Prediction
The apparent look of the pitch indicates that it will be on the slower side, which means it will be difficult for batters to make strokes against spin attacks. However, pacers will remain on the back foot as they wouldn’t get any swing or bounce from this surface.
The toss will be crucial as both skippers will try to win it and decide to bat first because the previous stats show the high victory rate of batting 2nd side on this surface. According to cricket experts, the winning chances will increase by 70% for the team who opts to bowl first.
Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan 1st T20 Team Squad
Sri Lanka T20 Squad: Pathum Nissanka, Gunathilaka, Bhanuka Rajaspaksa, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Theekshana, Chamika Karunaratne, Asitha Fernando, Jeffrey Vandersay
Afghanistan T20 Squad: Najibullah Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Ibrahim Zadran, Usman Ghani, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad, Karim Janat