Afghanistan will be up against the West Indies in the first of the three-match T20I series of the West Indies Tour of Afghanistan. This article provides details about the Playing 11 of Afghanistan and the West Indies for the upcoming match.
Afghanistan Playing XI vs West Indies – Afghanistan v West Indies 2026:
Openers: Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk)
Afghanistan will look to get off to a winning start in three match T20I series against West Indies, courtesy of a win in the opening game.
For that to happen, the onus will be on the openers to lay a good platform for other batters to make the most of, which will in turn create pressure on the opposition bowlers.
The pair of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, who is exprcted to partner him at the top of the order, will look to fulfill their role.
Along with it, both batters would wish to make significent contribution individually as well and gain confidence for the matches to come.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan (c)
The likes of Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, and Gulbadin Naib will make Afghanistan’s middle order, with each of them having the capability of taking the game away from the opposition.
All eyes will be on Sediqullah Atal, who has impressed everyone in his short international career so far, and will look to build on it in the match in question.
Ata will be supported by Darwish Rasooli, who will also want to put on a strong performance, and Azmatullah Omarzai, who has been in good form in the last two years or so.
It would be interesting to see the approach that the Afghan batters take, given that the team has depth in its batting lineup, which might prompt them to attack right from the first ball.
Bowlers: Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi
As far as Afghanistan’s bowling lineup for the upcoming match is concerned, it will once again compruse of a number of spin bowling options.
The attack will be led by captain Rashid Khan, who will be entrusted to lead from the front and will hope for support from Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mohammad Nabi, and Noor Ahmad.
The fast bowling department of the team will be handled by Azmatullah Omazai, Gulbadin Naib, and Fazalhaq Farooqi.
The Afghan is expected to have at least seven bowlers at his dispossal making his work a bit easier.
West Indies Playing XI vs Afghanistan – Afghanistan v West Indies 2026:
Openers: Brandon King (c), Johnson Charles (wk)
West Indies have named a young squad for this series, which is missing some regular names like Jason Holder and captain Shai Hope, with the latter fulfilling his prior commitments.
Having said that, the team management would hope for the players to come up with spirited performances in their respective departments.
The openers will be backed to get the team off to a good start, so as to give the middle order batters a chance to prolong that against a strong Afghan bowling lineup.
The pair of captain Brandon King and Johnson Charles will look to put on a strong effort both in a partnership and as individual batters.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Keacy Carty, Alick Athanaze, Shimron Hetmyer, Justin Greaves
The Windies openers will be followed by a middle order which includes names like Keacy Carty, Alick Athanaze, and Shimron Hetmyer, all of whom can be a match-winner if they get going on any given day in white-ball cricket.
Two of the three names mentioned above are comparatively new to international cricket, meaning that Hetmyer will have to take the responsibility and control West Indies’ innings in the middle overs, both while batting first and while chasing.
Hetmyer will look for support from other battees as well to tackle the spin challenge that Afghanistan will throw at the West Indies in the first game, with as many as four spinners at their disposal.
If the Men in Maron are able to put on a strong show with the bat and negate the spin bowling threat of Afghanistan, they will increase their chances of winning.
Bowlers: Gudakesh Motie, Matthew Forde, Khary Pierre, Shamar Joseph, Jayden Seales
If we talk about the Windies’ bowling attack for the upcoming game, it might look opposite to their opponent, with only two spinners expected to feature in the playing XI.
Gudakesh Motie, who has delivered impressive performances with the ball in the recent past will back himself to take care of the team’s spin bowling arsenal. Motie will be supported by Khary Pierre as the second specialist spinner.
As faras West Indies’ fast bowling is concerned, it will have four pacers with Justin Greaves being the fast bowling all-rounder.
Jayden Seales, Shamar Joseph, and Matthew Forde will be the other three pacers, with Seales starting things off.
