As Afghanistan seek World Cup history, Sri Lanka look for revitalising win

An Afghan win would make history: a first ever World Cup victory against a Test-playing nation. Success for Sri Lanka, however, might just settle down a malfunctioning side in need of a positive result

Even in a tournament that is just six games old, there is a rare significance to Sri Lanka’s encounter with Afghanistan at Cardiff.

For two little-fancied sides sporting entirely differing narratives, quite simply, this is huge.

It is a chance for Sri Lanka to relieve some of the negativity – a dark cloud initially fostered by a curious 15-man squad more intriguing for its absences than its inclusions, and then heightened by the quite rotten manner of their 10-wicket demise at the hands of New Zealand on Saturday.

Dimuth Karunaratne became just the second man in World Cup history to carry his bat through an entire innings – both a nod to the combative captain’s determination and the sheer flimsy fragility of his teammates.

That he finished unbeaten on 52 said as much about his colleagues as it did about him. A grand total of 136 featured three ducks and eight single-figure scores; it was, frankly, fairly pathetic, even if New Zealand’s battery of seamers made life difficult for their subcontinental opponents.

Thus, as much as this World Cup – as any – is about points on the board, this encounter has greater significance for Karunaratne’s side.  This is, to an extent, about saving face and seeking redemption after the weekend’s embarrassment.

In Afghanistan, however, Sri Lanka face a side gunning for them. When the two sides met at the 2015 tournament, Afghanistan made 232 with Sri Lanka only getting home in the 49th over. The Afghans have certainly improved. Have Sri Lanka? Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan have disappeared from the meeting of four years.

If Sri Lanka were left with their tails between their legs, the Afghans offered up an enterprising display against a much-fancied Australia side. In many ways, Gulbadin Naib and his charges will have looked at a recovery from the precarious position of five for two to a final total of 207 as a deeply encouraging result.

The enterprising opening duo of Mohammad Shahzad and Hazratullah Zazai were both dismissed without scoring on Saturday, but they will click at some stage in the next month. When they do, it has the potential to make for spectacular viewing.

^{Rashid Khan dismissed Usman Khawaja in Afghanistan's seven-wicket defeat against Australia.}

Zazai hit six sixes in an over during the 2018 Afghanistan Premier League, while he also boasts a 62-ball 162 on his own personal record. There is more than an element of Chris Gayle about the way he plays the game; a T20 international strike-rate of 192.85 is fairly strong evidence of that.

Shahzad, meanwhile, is something of a throwback. The burly wicketkeeper is an immense talent, a man with all the shots and no little charisma. Get it wrong with the ball against these two at your peril.

If the external school of thought surrounding Afghanistan is that of an emerging nation just happy to be part of this World Cup, then that is to underestimate the ambition of a nation whose journey to the biggest stage defies all logic.

They are no longer World Cup debutants, having appeared at the 2015 tournament in Australia and New Zealand, while their first global appearance came at the 2010 World T20. Participating is no longer enough for a nation of dreamers. With a plethora of top-class spin options and – they’ll hope – a more favorable surface than that which they faced in Bristol against Australia, the Afghans are here to win.

Given the right conditions and a slower, lower pitch – the likes of which Cardiff has tended to produce for international fixtures, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi will be licking their lips.

It all makes Tuesday’s encounter a fascinating prospect. An Afghan win would make history: a first ever World Cup victory against a Test-playing nation. Success for Sri Lanka, however, might just settle down a malfunctioning side in need of a positive result.

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