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ToggleIt will be the eighth time Afghanistan and India will be taking on each other in the shortest format of the game, including the fourth occasion in the T20 World Cups. India are coming into this Afg vs Ind face-off, on the back of their unbeaten run in the Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 group stage, while the opponents lost their last group game against the co-host West Indies.
The middle over (7-15) period is a time when teams generally look to bring their spinners now and slow down the pace of the innings, with regular wickets. And if they don’t pick the wickets at this time then the job becomes quite tough, going into the death-over phase of the game.
Since the end of the last T20 World Cup 2024, going into the Afg vs Ind clash, the Indian team has been smacked for 1931 T20I runs in 29 innings, at an average of 20..76, and a strike rate of 16.51, which is quite decent compared to how the other teams have performed in this time.
The Rohit Sharma-led side have picked up 93 wickets in the nine-over time, which is great, led by Ravi Bishnoi who was a common member of the shortest format of the game for the Indian team. Their economy of 7.55 is exceptional in the middle overs, which helps them get the upper hand in the last five overs of the innings.
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They have been smashed for 106 boundaries and 97 sixes in this period, which is again another positive for them in the seventh to 15th over period, as they have also managed an average of 24.99, before the Afg vs Ind contest.
The Afghanistan team has registered 73 wickets in the 26 innings of the middle overs (7-15), by giving away 1563 T20I runs in 26 innings, at an average of 21.41, and a bowling strike rate of just over 19. The economy of under seven in these middle overs, which has been shouldered by their spinners- Mohammad Nabi, Noor Ahmed, or Rashid Khan has been superb.
They have been blasted for 93 fours in 26 innings, which is around four in those nine overs, along with 54 sixes, and that increases the pressure on the opponent sides, to whack in every single over of the death phase of the game.
AFG vs IND Head-to-Head Records
In the three T20Is of the T20 World Cups, between the two teams, in the Afg vs Ind clashes, the Indian team is unbeaten with 3-0 margin.
AFG vs IND Last Encounter In T20Is
In the last t20I game between these two sides, the fans loved the atmosphere, given it was a super-over contest at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The Indian team put on 212/4 in 20overs, thanks to Rohit’s 121-run knock along with Rinku Singh’s unbeaten innings of 69 runs in 39 balls.
The Afghanistan batters did a fabulous job with the bat to match the score, thanks to the three fifty-run knocks from the top three batters of the batting order. Later, in the super-over, the game was tied again, and that introduced the second super-over of the Afg vs Ind game, where India held their nerve for the victory.
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AFG vs IND Standout Performers
Most runs for India: Virat Kohli (201 runs)
Most runs for Afghanistan: Mohammad Nabi (163 runs)
Most wickets for India: Bhuvneshwar Kumar (5 wickets)
Most wickets for Afghanistan: Fareed Ahmed (5 wickets)
Key Match-ups between the India and Afghanistan players
- Rohit Sharma has nailed Rashid Khan for 20 unbeaten T20I runs in eight balls, with two sixes.
- Virat Kohli has smacked Rashid for 18 unbeaten T20I runs in 10 balls.
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz has faced Ravindra Jadeja in two balls, getting dismissed once in T20Is.