Who Will Win India vs Afghanistan Test Match?
Afghanistan are set to play their inaugural test match versus India which is scheduled to be played from June 14 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Live telecast will begin at 9:30 AM local time each day of the match.
Ind vs Afg Test: Where to Watch/Live Streaming
TV channels: Star Sports, Sky Sports Cricket, Fox Sports
Live Streaming: Bet365, Hotstar, Now TV
Toss Prediction
Out of the thirteen test matches played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium that have produced results, eight have been won by the side batting first. The average first-innings score here is 357 while the average fourth innings score reads 183. So the team that wins the toss in this match is more likely to bat first.
Read on for team previews, betting odds, betting tips and prediction for India vs Afghanistan only test match...
India Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Ajinkya Rahane is in charge of the 15-man squad as Virat Kohli has given this game a miss to prepare for the England tour. India's first-choice seamers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah have also been rested while batsman Rohit Sharma has been ignored by the selectors due to his inconsistency. Wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik has been added to the squad as replacement for Wriddhiman Saha is recovering from a thumb injury he had sustained during the IPL. Meanwhile, paceman Mohammed Shami has failed to clear his fitness test and he has been replaced by uncapped bowler Navdeep Saini.
Key Players
India's batting hopes will be pinned mainly on Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane. Pujara is the leading run-getter for the hosts in tests from the current squad while Vijay is not too far behind him. KL Rahul was one of the best batsmen this IPL and the team will want him to replicate that form in the longest format. Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav will be leading India's pace attack while Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are the specialist spinners in the side. Ishant and Ashwin took eight and seven wickets respectively in the test series against South Africa and the duo will be expected to take wickets here as well.
Recent Form
India have been outstanding in test cricket over the last few years. Since 2015, they have played eleven test series and have lost just one of those. That solitary defeat came in their last series in South Africa where they ended up losing 1-2. After going down in their first two fixtures, India came back strongly in the third game to avert a clean sweep.
India Predicted Playing 11
Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Karun Nair, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav
Afghanistan Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Asghar Stanikzai will be leading Afghanistan in this one-off test match against India. The 16-man squad consists of four spin options - two wristspinners in Zahir Khan and Rashid Khan and two fingerspinners in Amir Hamza and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. The visitors will miss the serivices of fast bowler Dawlat Zadran who has been ruled out with a knee injury. 18-year old promising paceman Wafadar has been named as Dawlat's replacement. Mohammad Shahzad has been confirmed to keep wickets while Afsar Zazai has been included as a reserve wicketkeeping option.
Key Players
Afghanistan will look to the likes of Mohammad Shahzad, Asghar Stanikzai, Rahmat Shah and Mohammad Nabi to shoulder the responsibility when it comes to batting. Shahzad's first-class record reads 1582 runs from 20 matches with 214 being his highest score. Skipper Stanikzai's ability to stay at the crease for long durations will be crucial at the top which could frustrate the Indian bowlers. Nabi can contribute not only with the bat but with the ball as well. The all-rounder has scored 1251 runs and taken 86 wickets in 32 matches at the domestic level. With the ball, Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman will be the biggest threats for the Indian batsmen. Both are coming off a fruitful IPL season where they shone for their respective franchises. While Rahman is expected to do well here, Rashid remains the trump card for Afghanistan.
Afghanistan Predicted Playing 11
Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Asghar Stanikzai (c), Rahmat Shah, Javed Ahmadi, Nasir Jamal, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Amir Hamza, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Zahir Khan, Yamin Ahmadzai
Jun 14 - Jun 15, 2018
09:30 IST / 4:00 GMT
M Chinnaswamy Stadium - Bengaluru, India
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