Ireland vs Afghanistan 2016, 3rd ODI at Belfast, Predictions and Preview: Afghanistan look to maintain lead

After a victory in the second One-Day International (ODI) against Ireland at their home, a confident Afghanistan side will look to maintain the lead with yet another flawless performance. After the first ODI was washed out, the second match provided good piece of action. Afghanistan continued on their recent good form, registering a 39-run win despite a good bowling performance by the hosts. Brimming with confidence, the tourists will now look to win the third ODI at the very same venue, and eventually take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. One the other hand, Ireland would like to improve on their recent displays, and crawl their way back into the series.

Mohammad Shahzad has been the most influential batsman for the Afghanistan side since a long time now, and he yet again proved his worth by scoring a standout 66 in the last match, which had 8 fours and a six. Afghanistan will hope for a similar start in the third ODI as well, which would propel their run-rate at the very start. A matter of concern for skipper Asghar Stanikzai will be the inconsistency of the middle-order. The strength of the Afghanistan team has been the middle-order, including Stanikzai himself, but have failed to click together since a long time. Rahmat Shah and Najibullah Zadran are the two names who have been in a good form though. While Rahmat brags about a century in Scotland, Najibullah has consistent runs to his credit and the duo will be the key players for the match.

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The Ireland batting also lacks consistency, with particular players shining in a particular game. The line-up looks good though, with names like William Porterfield, Kevin O’Brien and Ed Joyce. Talking of Joyce, the player was the only one to go past the 50-run mark in the last ODI and the team will depend a lot upon this flamboyant batsman to replicate the performance. But to turn the third ODI into a win, Porterfield will need all his men to unite and give a team performance.

Both the teams have displayed impressive bowling performance so far. The first name that comes to one’s mind is the brilliant form of Mohammad Nabi, who has been the star with the ball for Afghanistan lately. Another bowler, who is enjoying a similar success with the ball is Rashid Khan. Rashid and Nabi together take the Afghanistan spin department up to a remarkable high and the talented Dawlat Zadran adds even more strength with his pace. Dawlat, after struggling with his form for some time, has found his way back to good line and length which will be a threat to the Ireland batting. The team also has Mirwais Ashraf, who, motivated by the team’s stupendous bowling performance, will try to match up to the level of his teammates.

Talking of the Ireland bowling, the team has found a fresh and reliable option in Barry McCarthy. The bowler made his debut against Sri Lanka and have been impressive ever since. Barry, along with Kevin O’Brien, scalped 4-wickets in the previous ODI which will boost his confidence more. Another bowler will trouble Stanikzai’s men for Ireland, despite remaining wicketless in the previous ODI, will be Tim Murtagh.

Squads:

Ireland: Max Sorensen, John Anderson, William Porterfield(c), George Dockrell, Ed Joyce, Tim Murtagh, Andy McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Stuart Poynter, Boyd Rankin, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Gary Wilson (wk)

Afghanistan: 
Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Noor Ali Zadran, Javed Ahmadi, Asghar Stanikzai (c), Rahmat Shah, Mohammad Nabi, Samiullah Shinwari, Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan, Mirwais Ashraf, Gulbadin Naib, Dawlat Zadran, Hamid Hassan, Shapoor Zadran, Amir Hamza Hotak, Yamin Ahmadzai.

Time: 3:15 PM IST | 09:45 AM GMT

(Paulami Chakraborty, a singer, dancer, artist, and photographer, loves the madness of cricket and writes about the game. She can be followed on Twitter at @Polotwitts)