Last Updated on 1 year ago by Charbel Coorey

NZ vs AFG Dream11 Prediction & Fan2Play Possible 11 Pitch Report: T20 World Cup 2022 Match 21 | NZ vs AFG Dream11 Prediction Today | MCG Pitch Report

If making a strong statement was an Olympic sport, New Zealand would have the gold medal. The Black Caps are coming off an emphatic, outstanding, and perfect display against defending champions Australia at the SCG, thrashing the hosts by 89 runs in an cricketing exhibition.

Finn Allen and Devon Conway looks a magnificent opening partnership. Kane Williamson and Glenn Phillips have more in their arsenal. Jimmy Neesham can strike the ball miles. And, that’s before we mention the New Zealand attack. When a World Cup comes around, New Zealand can never be counted out, and they proved why once again.

So, a big test awaits Afghanistan, provided the weather permits. Mohammad Nabi’s team fought brilliantly with the ball against England, but whether their batting can match it with experienced attacks in these conditions is the big question. Afghanistan, who enjoy hitting sixes, will have to find ways to rotate the strike effectively given the large MCG boundaries.

NZ vs AFG Possible Playing XI

Daryl Mitchell is expected to return in this match. Otherwise, New Zealand look settled.

New Zealand: 1. Finn Allen, 2. Devon Conway (wk), 3. Kane Williamson (c), 4. Glenn Phillips, 5. James Neesham, 6. Daryl Mitchell/Mark Chapman, 7. Mitchell Santner, 8. Ish Sodhi, 9. Trent Boult, 10. Tim Southee, 11. Lockie Ferguson

Afghanistan may look to play Naveen-ul-Haq.

Afghanistan: 1. Hazratullah Zazai, 2. Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 3. Ibrahim Zadran, 4. Usman Ghani, 5. Najibullah Zadran, 6. Mohammad Nabi (c), 7. Rashid Khan, 8. Azmatullah Omarzai, 9. Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10. Naveen-ul-Haq/Fareed Ahmad, 11. Fazalhaq Farooqi

Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

New Zealand:

• Devon Conway is Mr. Consistent for New Zealand. He is coming off a magnificent 58-ball 92* against Australia. The left-hander will be key against Afghanistan’s spinners, and he scored 36* against them at Abu Dhabi last year.
• Conway in his last six T20Is: 36, 70*, 49*, 64, 14, 92*.
• Finn Allen represented a new Black Caps attitude in Australia. His 16-ball 42 is one of the World Cup’s more memorable knocks, given how he took the game to the hosts. The opener has an incredible strike rate of 172.78 in 73 T20 matches.
• Glenn Phillips is New Zealand’s highest run-scorer in T20Is this year: 13 inns, 461 runs, avg. 46.10, SR 152.64.
• Mitchell Santner was superb against Australia (3/31). His control of length is a standout feature of his game, and he will use the long square boundaries of the MCG to his advantage.
• Trent Boult was player of the match against Afghanistan in last year’s World Cup (3/17). He dismissed Hazratullah Zazai and Najibullah Zadran. Tim Southee took 2/24 in the same game, and is coming off 3/6 against Australia. Expect both bowlers to find swing and movement.

Afghanistan:

• Ibrahim Zadran will be key in holding the innings together. The 20-year old has struck five consecutive scores of 30+ in T20Is.
• Najibullah Zadran impressed against New Zealand last year. The left-hander, who is Afghanistan’s highest run-scorer in T20Is this year (340), hit 73 off 48 balls against the Black Caps at Abu Dhabi.
• It’s been a poor year for Mohammad Nabi with the bat (149 runs, avg. 12.41). If Afghanistan are to compete against NZ, they need a contribution from their captain, who has 43 matches of T20 experience in Australia (661 runs, 28 wickets).
• Rashid Khan has 94 wickets in 62 T20 matches in Australia, and is conceding just 6.35 per over. Expect the champion legspinner to bowl into the wicket with the long square boundaries.
• Mujeeb Ur Rahman has taken 14 wickets in 12 T20Is this year at an economy of just 6.19. Interestingly, ten of those wickets are right-handers.
• Fazalhaq Farooqi is Afghanistan’s leading wicket-taker this year (18), with an economy of just 6.76. Nine of these wickets have come in the powerplay, where he is averaging 18.4 with an economy of 5.72.

Other Stats and Facts

• Head-to-head: Matches 1, New Zealand 1, Afghanistan 0.
• New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson top scored against Afghanistan in last year’s World Cup (40* off 42 balls).
• Jimmy Neesham has a strike rate of 197.16 between overs 16 and 20 in all T20s in 2022 (418 runs off 212 balls).
• Ish Sodhi is New Zealand’s leading wicket-taker this year: 16 inns, 21 wickets, avg. 23.57, econ. 8.34.
• Rahmanullah Gurbaz in all T20s in 2022: 36 inns, 945 runs, avg. 28.63, SR 157.41.

MCG Melbourne Pitch Report and Weather

The chasing team has won eight of the last nine T20Is at the MCG (before the ENG vs IRE game). As the classic India-Pakistan game showed, the MCG pitch has a good covering of grass that enables good bounce and good cricket. The average first innings score in Melbourne in the last ten T20 matches is 169.4.

Rain is expected to have a say, with an 80% chance of showers and up to 8mm forecast.

NZ vs AFG Dream11 Prediction Today October 26 2022

Note: The below teams are not based on the final playing XIs. We may not be able to update these in time. Use the stats and commentary in this article as well as your own instincts to create your teams.

Option 1:

Option 2:

Fan2Play Prediction

Base Team:

• Wicket-Keepers: Devon Conway
• Batsmen: Kane Williamson, Ibrahim Zadran
• All-Rounders: Mohammad Nabi, Mitchell Santner
• Bowlers: Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Rashid Khan

T20 World Cup 2022 Match 21: NZ vs AFG Match Prediction – Who will win?

Weather permitting, New Zealand should win.