Match Details
Teams: Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan
Date & Time: 18 September, 08:00 PM IST
Venue: Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tournament: T20I (Playing XIs not announced yet)
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Recent Form:
Sri Lanka: W W W L (momentum building; top-order steadier, pace firing)
Afghanistan: L W W W (strong bounce-back; spin + powerplay hitting key)
H2H (recent snippets): Mixed edge both ways in recent meetings. Notable H2H fantasy scorers: W. Hasaranga, R. Gurbaz, M. Nabi, M. Pathirana.
Venue Read: Abu Dhabi tends to be balanced with an avg 1st inns ~167. Toss trend leans to chasing (60% wins); captains often choose to chase (80%).
Fantasy angle: All-rounders + death-over pacers + one attacking opener are high-upside on this ground.
Win Probability (Modelled from form, H2H, and venue fit)
Team | Chance |
|---|---|
Sri Lanka | 52% |
Afghanistan | 48% |
Close contest: SL’s pace upturn (Chameera/Thushara) vs AFG’s elite spin and PP hitting.
Pitch & Venue Analysis — Sheikh Zayed Stadium
Surface: Balanced; new ball okay for strokeplay; holds a touch later with grip for spinners.
Avg 1st inns: 167 | Avg wickets/inns: ~6
Toss: Teams prefer chasing (80%); chasing win-rate ~60%.
Pacers vs Spinners (Fantasy points per over):
1st inns: Pace 10.3 vs Spin 11.5 (spin slightly better)
2nd inns: Pace 17.1 vs Spin 12.8 (death pacers dominate late)
Venue Top Performers (small sample):
A. Omarzai avg 137 (2 m)
K. Mishara avg 96 (1 m)
Rashid Khan avg 94 (2 m)
P. Nissanka avg 94 (1 m)
Noor Ahmad avg 84 (2 m)
W. Hasaranga avg 82 (1 m)
N. Thushara avg 73 (1 m)
Fantasy takeaway: build even bat-bowl, add one extra death pacer if chasing, and at least one premium spinner.
Sri Lanka — Last 5 Matches (Most recent → older)
Player | Points |
|---|---|
Dushmantha Chameera | 82, 67, 81, 134, 124 |
Pathum Nissanka | 120, 94, 67, 16, 109 |
Wanindu Hasaranga | 79, 82, 62, 65, 76 |
Kamil Mishara | 33, 96, 137, 40, 5 |
Kusal Mendis (WK tag) | 43, 23, 80, 13, 82 |
Nuwan Thushara | 11, 73, 36, 47, 71 |
Maheesh Theekshana | 19, 59, 50, 14, 47 |
Kusal Perera | 34, 17, 104, 8, 10 |
Kusal Mendis (BAT tag) | 17, 4, 4, 2, 87 |
Dasun Shanaka | 45, 11, 5, 19, 15 |
Charith Asalanka | 10, 21, 13, 26, 5 |
Afghanistan — Last 5 Matches (Most recent → older)
Player | Points |
|---|---|
Rashid Khan | 130, 58, 150, 96, 130 |
Noor Ahmad | 115, 54, 92, 50, 87 |
Sediq Atal | 2, 137, 25, 116, 102 |
Fazalhaq Farooqi | 15, 87, 86, 90, 43 |
Azmatullah Omarzai | 109, 166, 6, 28, 6 |
Ibrahim Zadran | 15, 5, 19, 96, 123 |
Mohammad Nabi | 27, 75, 12, 89, 54 |
Rahmanullah Gurbaz | 63, 26, 21, 94, 26 |
Gulbadin Naib | 28, 94, 35, 26, 33 |
Karim Janat | 18, 14, 2, 64, 24 |
Allah Ghazanfar | 7, 18, 70, 15 |
Fantasy Form Snapshot (Last 5 — Overall)
Top Multi-match Performers
Rashid Khan (AFG, AR): 564 pts (5) — wickets + economy bonus; batting cameo upside.
D. Chameera (SL, BOW): 488 pts (5) — strike-bowler, death overs.
P. Nissanka (SL, BAT): 406 pts (5) — consistency anchor.
Noor Ahmad (AFG, BOW): 398 pts (5) — middle-overs wickets.
S. Atal (AFG, BAT): 382 pts (5) — recent ceiling knocks.
W. Hasaranga (SL, AR): 364 pts (5) — dual-threat, safe C/VC.
F. Farooqi (AFG, BOW): 321 pts (5) — powerplay wicket-taker; some death.
A. Omarzai (AFG, AR): 315 pts (5) — bat-time + 2-3 overs; venue friendly.
K. Mishara (SL, WK): 311 pts (5) — form uptick.
R. Gurbaz (AFG, WK): 230 pts (5) — high-variance PP dasher.
Team H2H Notables (across recent meetings)
W. Hasaranga: 485 pts (6) | R. Gurbaz: 417 (6) | M. Nabi: 320 (6) | M. Pathirana: 283 (4) | I. Zadran: 272 (6) | F. Farooqi: 267 (5).
Powerplay & Death Overs Impact
Powerplay (0–6):
AFG batting: R. Gurbaz (attack), I. Zadran (stability).
SL bowling: Chameera + Theekshana (PP wickets).
AFG bowling: Farooqi swings it; chance vs SL RH top.
SL batting: Nissanka the glue; K. Mendis intent-based bonus.
Death (16–20):
SL bowling: Chameera/Thushara — key wicket clusters (venue favors pacers late).
AFG bowling: Rashid sometimes overlaps 14–16; Naveen/Farooqi can close; Noor if grip.
Upshot: Prioritize Chameera / Farooqi as wicket-taking bowlers and Rashid / Hasaranga for middle-overs control + bonus.
Key MVP Picks (C/VC Tier)
Rashid Khan (AFG, AR) — elite floor + ceiling; venue returns good.
W. Hasaranga (SL, AR) — wickets + late-hitting; superb H2H history.
D. Chameera (SL, BOW) — red-hot form; death overs align with venue bias.
P. Nissanka (SL, BAT) — safest SL batter for accumulation-based points.
Differential Picks (High Upside/Risk)
Noor Ahmad (AFG, BOW): wicket bursts in middle; under-picked vs Rashid.
A. Omarzai (AFG, AR): venue darling; role flexibility.
N. Thushara (SL, BOW): slingy death overs; spikes late.
K. Mishara (SL, WK): recent returns, if opening/Top-3.
Suggested Dream11 Team (Pre-Toss)
(Balance for a neutral pitch; adjust after XIs/toss. Max 7 per team respected.)
WK (2):
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (AFG) — PP ceiling.
Kamil Mishara (SL) — current form, venue tick.
BAT (3):
Pathum Nissanka (SL) — anchor.
Ibrahim Zadran (AFG) — stability vs pace.
Sediq Atal (AFG) — form differential.
ALL-ROUND (3):
Rashid Khan (AFG) — C
Wanindu Hasaranga (SL) — VC
Azmatullah Omarzai (AFG)
BOWL (3):
Dushmantha Chameera (SL)
Fazalhaq Farooqi (AFG)
Noor Ahmad (AFG)
Team Split: SL 4 / AFG 7
Captain: Rashid Khan | Vice-Captain: W. Hasaranga
Bench/Alternates (depending on XIs & toss): N. Thushara (SL), M. Theekshana (SL), M. Nabi (AFG), K. Mendis (SL), Naveen-ul-Haq (AFG), K. Perera (SL).
Conditional Tweaks (Use after Toss)
If AFG bat first:
Boost Noor Ahmad/Rashid (middle overs), keep Farooqi (new ball), retain Chameera for chase pressure.
Consider M. Nabi over S. Atal if AFG stack spin.
If SL bat first:
Elevate Theekshana (PP), N. Thushara (death).
Gurbaz risk rises vs new ball; hedge with K. Mendis if you prefer stability.
If the pitch looks dry/tacky: double-spin with Rashid + Noor + Hasaranga (all three), and drop one pacer (Farooqi/Thushara) based on XIs.
If there’s evening dew: chasing team gains hitting ease; prioritize death pacers from the defending side for wicket bursts.
Final Tips
Core lock: Rashid, Hasaranga, Chameera/Nissanka.
Ceiling hunting: Add Gurbaz if AFG bat first; Thushara if SL defend.
Safety build: Prefer Nissanka + Omarzai + Rashid + Hasaranga + one PP pacer (Farooqi/Chameera).
GL Differentials: Noor Ahmad, Kamil Mishara, Sediq Atal.
Reminder: Update for confirmed XIs & roles at toss. If heavy dew, chasing batters/finishers gain value; if drier, triple-spin stacks become viable.