World Cup 2023, Match 22 | Pakistan Predicted XI vs Afghanistan

image-lo1gh0rmPakistan will face Afghanistan in the 22nd match of the World Cup 2023 (Source: AP Photos)

Asian sides Pakistan (PAK) and Afghanistan (AFG) square off against each other in Match No. 22 of the ongoing sixteenth edition of the World Cup. The clash is scheduled to take place on Monday, October 23, 2023, at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai at 2:00 PM IST. Babar Azam's Pakistan side has now lost two games on the bounce while Hashmatullah Shahidi's Afghanistan enter the contest on the back of a hammering by 149 runs at the hands of New Zealand. 

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The Men in Green started off the tournament with two wins in their opening two encounters. Pakistan beat the Netherlands by 81 runs and then defeated the Lankan Lions by a margin of six wickets, both in Hyderabad. Babar's team then faced their first loss of the campaign as they got beaten by arch-rivals India in Ahmedabad before suffering another defeat against Australia in their fourth outing. 

Meanwhile, the Afghans lost their first two matches against Bangladesh and India before they stunned the reigning champions England as they beat them by 69 runs in Delhi. The 1992 champions Pakistan will look to return to winning ways against their neighbors in this tie. Let us have a look at their predicted XI against Afghanistan.


Openers: Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq

Left-hand right-hand combination of Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique will be the opening pair for Pakistan.  The duo added 134 runs for the opening wicket against Australia in the last game. Imam struggled in the first two matches but then found his touch as he scored 36 and 70 in the next two. Shafique has struck the second-most runs for his side so far in this WC. The right-hander has amassed 197 runs at an average of 65.66 with one ton and one fifty.

Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq 2023 ODI Form

Player
Matches
Runs
Runs Per Innings
Abdullah Shafique627545.83
Imam-ul-Haq1658138.73


Middle-Order: Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel

Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel will form the middle-order for the Pakistanis. Captain Babar hasnt been amongst the runs and he is due for a big knock under his belt. The no. three right-handed batter has just one half-century to his name in four innings this WC. Wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan is the leading run-getter in the ongoing showpiece event so far. The no. four player is averaging 98.00 with one hundred and one fifty. No. five batter Saud Shakeel has an average of 34 with one half-century in this WC. The 28-year old has scores of 68, 31, 6 and 30.

Recent ODI Stats of the Pakistani Middle-order:

Player
Matches
Runs
Runs Per Innings
Babar Azam2082843.57
Mohammad Rizwan2092270.92
Saud Shakeel514428.80


All-rounders: Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz

Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz will form the lower middle-order for Pakistan. Iftikhar is an aggressive batter who plays at no. six. The right-hander two single-digit scores and two scores of 22* and 26 so far. He will look to provide the late flourish if his side is batting first and to guide them to a win in a run-chase. Pakistan dropped Shadab in the last game for Usama Mir but the latter went for 82 runs in his nine-over spell. The Men in Greem would look to bring Shadab back on a turning Chennai track. Nawaz has scores of 39, 4 and 14 under his belt and has picked up just two wickets. He will look to finally deliver an all-round show against the Afghans. 

Here is a look at the record of these players in ODIs in 2023:

Player
Matches
Runs
Wickets
Iftikhar Ahmed134095
Shadab Khan1417215
Mohammad Nawaz1412911



Bowlers: Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali

Pacers Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali will be the bowlers for this game. Speedster Afridi has picked up the most wickets (nine) for his side in this WC. The left arm seamer is fresh from picking up a five wicket haul against the Aussies in the least match. Rauf has snared second-most scalps (eight) after Afridi in this campaign. Hasan is behind the duo with seven scalps under his belt.

This is how the trio has done with the ball in ODIs in 2023:

Player
Matches
Wickets
Strike-rate
Shaheen Afridi163323.9
Haris Rauf173224.9
Hasan Ali4726.5


Pakistan Predicted XI vs Afghanistan

Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Hasan Ali.