Afghanistan seek breakthrough as qualification stakes rise

Afghanistan and UAE meet in Group D at a stage where every result begins to carry added weight. Afghanistan are still searching for their first win after being outplayed by New Zealand and then falling agonisingly short against South Africa in a match decided after two Super Overs, leaving them fourth in the standings. UAE, meanwhile, recovered from a heavy defeat to New Zealand to edge out Canada in a close contest, giving themselves a timely lift ahead of this fixture.

Afghanistan's campaign has swung between frustration and promise. They were unable to match New Zealand's control in their opening game, but against South Africa they showed their fighting qualities, pushing the contest deep before narrowly missing out in dramatic fashion. The challenge now is to convert competitiveness into results, with sharper execution in key moments likely to determine whether they can keep their qualification hopes alive.

UAE, in contrast, have already experienced both extremes of tournament cricket. After a 10-wicket drubbing at the hands of New Zealand, they regrouped well to secure a narrow win against Canada, showing greater composure with both bat and ball. That result has given them a foothold in the group, and they will see this clash as another chance to strengthen their position.

When: Match 28, Monday, February 16 at 11:00 AM Local Time

Where: Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi

What to expect: This will be the fourth match in Delhi and only the second to begin at 11 AM. Batting first in the morning and afternoon fixtures has not been straightforward, with scores around the 150 mark proving to be the norm and chasing sides coming out on top. The only 200-plus total at the venue came in an evening game when India reached 209 against Namibia, though batting was not quite as easy as that scoreline suggested. A total in the 170-180 range could therefore prove a strong, potentially match-defining score for the side setting the target.

Head to head: Afghanistan have a 11-3 advantage in T20Is against the UAE, including three wins in their last three face-offs. UAE last won against Afghanistan in Sharjah in December 2023.

Team News:

Afghanistan: Noor Ahmad replaced Ziaur Rahman in the previous game. While both have been expensive in their outings so far, the left-arm wrist-spinner could hold on to his place given the X-factor he offers.

Probable XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan (c), Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi

UAE: Muhammad Jawadullah and Muhammad Farooq, both brought in for the last game, are likely to retain their spots. Jawadullah impressed with an economical spell of 1 for 16 in four overs against Canada, while Farooq conceded 19 runs from his two overs.

Probable XI: Aryansh Sharma (wk), Muhammad Waseem (c), Alishan Sharafu, Mayank Kumar, Sohaib Khan, Harshit Kaushik, Muhammad Arfan, Muhammad Farooq, Haider Ali, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Jawadullah

What they said:

"I'd like to make sure that we get it right against the UAE in Delhi. They're a good side and so are we so we got to hopefully finish playing some good cricket and see what we come up with. Hopefully this group can surprise a few people and a few losses somewhere along the line and we get ourselves back in, and we've got to stay positive" - Jonathan Trott, Afghanistan head coach.