History beckons Afghanistan when they face England for a maiden place in the final of the ICC U-19 Men’s World Cup at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound in Antigua on Tuesday. (More Cricket News)
This is also the second time in the history of the tournament Afghanistan have qualified for the semifinals. The last time was during the 2018 edition.
Coming from a group stage ouster in the 2021 U-19 Asia Cup in the UAE, Afghanistan’s performance in the ongoing World Cup has taken everyone by surprise, especially their narrow four-run win over Sri Lanka in the quarterfinals.
The Afghanistan vs England encounter will be live telecast on Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports Select 2, Star Sports Select 2 HD from 6:20 PM IST. Disney+ Hotstar will livestream the Afghanistan vs England ICC U-19 World Cup 2022 clash at 6:20 PM IST.
Afghanistan arrived in the Caribbean late, thanks to the visa glitches, forcing in the cancellation of their warm-up games. But that had little effect on the spirited Afghanistan side that began with a huge 135-run opening win against minnows Papua New Guinea.
Afghanistan suffered a reality check in their 24-run loss against Pakistan before winning the next two games against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka which put them on the threshold of history. On the other hand, England are coning into this tie as one of the unbeaten sides besides India.
England won against Bangladesh, UAE, Canada and South Africa. In fact, England scored 300-plus runs each time against UAE and Canada. The last time England won an ICC U-19 World Cup was in 2010.
AFG Vs ENG Head-To-Head
Afghanistan met England only once in the history of the ICC U-19 World Cup losing the game by nine wickets in 2010 in Christchurch. Incidentally, that England side comprised of today’s stars Jos Buttler, Joe Root, Ben Stokes and James Vince.
Players To Watch Out For
Captain Suliman Safi has been the most impressive of the Afghanistan batters with a century and a fifty to his name so far. Among the bowlers, all eyes will be on Izharulhaq Naveed and Nangeyalia Kharote who have taken nine and seven wickets respectively.
Tom Prest has led England’s charge throughout the competition. Sitting second to South African Dewald Brevis in the run-getters chart, Prest has accumulated 275 runs from four games with a century and a fifty. He scored 154 not out against UAE.
Joshua Boyden has been England’s go-to man when it comes to taking wickets. The left-handed pacer so far has bagged 12 wickets from four games at an economy rate of 3.15.
Squads
England U-19: Tom Prest (c), George Bell, Joshua Boyden, Alex Horton, Rehan Ahmed, James Sales, George Thomas, Thomas Aspinwall, Nathan Barnwell, Jacob Bethell, James Coles, William Luxton, James Rew, Fateh Singh, Benjamin Cliff Bench
Afghanistan U-19: Suliman Safi (c), Abdul Hadi, Bilal Ahmad, Bilal Sayedi, Ijaz Ahmad Azad, Khaiber Wali, Mohammad Ishaq, Nangyalai Khan, Noor Ahmad, Suliman Arabzai, Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai, Allah Noor, Bilal Sami, Faisal Khan Ahmadzai, Izharulhaq Naveed, Khalel Ahmad, Mohammadullah Najibullah, Naveed Zadran, Shahidullah Hasani, Nangeyalia kharote
