India take on Afghanistan in their final Super Four match of Asia Cup 2018 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Tuesday, September 25.
When is the match and how to watch it live online
The Super Four match will start at 3:30 pm local time, 5 pm IST and 12:30 pm BST.
Star Sports 1, Star Sports Hindi, and Star Sports Tamil will provide live television coverage of the match in India. The live stream will be available on Hotstar.
What to expect from the match
India have already sealed their place in the final of Asia Cup while Afghanistan have been knocked out despite some spirited performances over the last few days.
Nonetheless, there is excitement around the upcoming fixture as the much-improved Afghanistan are meeting the Asian giants in ODIs for the first time since 2014.
Ashgar Afghan's 10th-ranked side were brilliant in the group stages as they knocked Sri Lanka out of the competition and beat Bangladesh as well. However, following two successive close defeats in the Super Fours means they have lost the opportunity to reach the final.
Afghanistan though will be hoping to finish the tournament on a high and a win against the in-form Indian side will help them do so.
While Afghanistan bowlers, especially their spin trio of Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammed Nabi, have been excellent, as usual, their batsmen have stepped up and shone in the tournament.
Hashmatullah Shahidi, with 263 runs, is third on the list of run-scorers only behind the Indian openers Shikhar Dhawan (327) and Rohit Sharma (269).
India likely to rest key players ahead of final
On the other hand, India will be hoping to use Tuesday's match to give their stars a bit of rest ahead of the big final, scheduled for Friday. The Men in Blue will be facing the winner of tomorrow's virtual semi-final between Pakistan and Bangladesh.
In-form batsman KL Rahul, who has warmed the benches so far, is likely to make his way back into the playing XI. India may also consider playing Manish Pandey in place of Dinesh Karthik against Afghanistan.
On the other hand, pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar may also be rested and young Khaleel Ahmed, who impressed on debut against Hong Kong, is likely to get another opportunity to impress in India colours. It is going to be a tussle between Deepak Chahar and Siddharth Kaul for the second pacer's spot.
Rohit's men have been undefeated so far in the tournament and they will be hoping to keep the record intact as carrying winning momentum into the final will be a big boost.
Team News - Predicted playing XIs
India: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Ambati Rayudu, Manish Pandey, MS Dhoni (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Khaleel Ahmed.
Asghar Afghan (c), Mohammad Shahzad, Ihsanullah Janat, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Mohammad Nabi, Samiullah Shenwari, Rashid Khan, Gulbadin Naib, Aftab Alam, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
Pitch and conditions
Afghanistan will be playing their first match of the tournament in Dubai, which has been offering a sluggish wicket so far. Batting under the lights has helped teams as the ball seems to come onto the bat better than in the hot afternoons.
India vs Afghanistan: Asia Cup 2018 TV Guide
- US, Australia: Yupptv
- Afghanistan: Ariana TV
- Bangladesh: Channel 9, BTV
- Pakistan: PTV Sports
- UAE: OSN Sports Cricket
- Sri Lanka: SLRC (Channel Eye)
