ICC World Cup 2019: Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka: Preview, match details, venue, team news, probable XI

Afghanistan mightve gone down to Australia in their opening game, but will back themselves to bounce back against Sri Lanka — Afghanistan might've gone down to Australia in their opening game, but will back themselves to bounce back against Sri Lanka

Cardiff, June 3: After being comprehensively beaten on all three fronts in their opening game against New Zealand, Sri Lanka will hope for a much improved performance against Afghanistan on Tuesday (June 4). Lanka did not have an ideal start to their ICC World Cup 2019 campaign, as they lost by 10 wickets to New Zealand.

1. Sri Lanka

None of their batsmen could support captain Dimuth Karunaratne, who carried his bat with an unbeaten 52, as Sri Lanka folded for 136. Their bowlers, despite having very little to play with, also proved ineffective, finishing wicketless as New Zealand sealed the chase in 16 overs. Sri Lanka's batting unit has now failed to last the full 50 overs on two separate occasions, including once in the warm-ups, and will have to pull itself up against a well-rounded Afghanistan attack. Likewise, Karunaratne will expect his fast bowlers to exploit the conditions.

2. Afghanistan

They might've gone down to Australia in their opening game in Bristol, but will back themselves to bounce back against Sri Lanka. Their openers both bagged ducks against Australia, but have shown match-winning capabilities in the past. Afghanistan were shored up by lower order contributions against Australia, which was a positive, but skipper Gulbadin Naib would hope someone from the top order can hold the innings together.

3. Key Player: Afghanistan: Mohammad Nabi

Currently ranked third in the ICC ODI All-Rounder Rankings, Mohammad Nabi has been one of the the torch-bearers of Afghanistan cricket. Apart from his batting skills, the veteran can be expected to come in handy with his off-breaks, against a batting line-up dominated by left-handers.

4. Key Player: Sri Lanka

Angelo Mathews: After having got out for a duck against New Zealand, Mathews will be expected to motivate his side with a significant contribution on Tuesday. With his supreme batting talent, the former captain, who showed signs of form with a half century in the warm-ups, has the ability to produce match-winning performances in any conditions.

5. Squads

Afghanistan: Gulbadin Naib (c), Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Noor Ali Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb ur Rahman.

Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Avishka Fernando, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Jeevan Mendis, Kusal Mendis (wk), Kusal Perera (wk), Thisara Perera, Nuwan Pradeep, Dhananjaya de Silva, Milinda Siriwardana, Lahiru Thirimanne, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay.