2nd T20I: India Eye Series Win As Afghanistan Look To Force A Fightback (Preview)

2nd T20I: India Nears Series Clincher as Afghanistan Dig In for Fightback

India sit on the brink of a series win heading into the 2nd T20I vs Afghanistan (Tue, Sep 15, 7:30 PM IST at Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi). Game 1 was effectively decided by India's explosive start — Afghanistan slipped to 43/5 before Azmatullah Omarzai (64*) and Nabi's 83-run stand dragged them to 156/8. Then Abhishek Sharma turned the chase into a procession: 82 off 32 (7 sixes, 7 fours), with Ishan Kishan's 42 supporting as India raced to 157/3 in just 13.4 overs. Arshdeep Singh's 3/19 with the ball did the early damage.

Afghanistan's key challenge — the powerplay. Gurbaz was caught out for a duck in Bumrah's first over. If they're to challenge the world champions, the top order must survive the newball and give the middle order something to build on. Omarzai's counterattack showed India's bowling can be disrupted when Afghanistan take the initiative — a template they'll need again.

India's selection headache. Shreyas Iyer called the batting options a "luxury," but Abhishek's 82 has made reverting to that call very hard. Samson (10) and Kishan (42) keep the competition for places alive. With the Asian Games on the horizon, Bumrah's workload is worth monitoring. Note on squad fitness: Harshit Rana is out with a rectus femoris strain picked up in training, with Yash Thakur brought in as replacement.

Afghanistan still have Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb, Nangyal Kharoti and a NaveenulHaq return to fire up their spin/pace attack, with Ibrahim Zadran commanding the side for the first time. But the big question for Tuesday comes down to this: can they finally control those first six overs?

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Source: Cricketnmore