With the three-match contest on the line, Brandon King chose to chase in the second T20I against Afghanistan in Dubai. West Indies trail 0-1 after a 38-run defeat on Sunday and must win tonight to keep the series alive.
“We’ve seen teams score freely later in the evening, so we’d rather know the target,” King said at the toss, sounding typically calm. Rashid Khan, captaining Afghanistan, replied: “Runs on the board worked for us, but we’re happy to set a score again.”
Both sides are using the series to tidy up their plans before the T20 World Cup starts on 7 February.
West Indies changes
• Ramon Simmonds, the left-arm quick who impressed in the CPL, replaces Jayden Seales.
• Alick Athanaze comes in for wicket-keeper batter Amir Jangoo, pushing Johnson Charles back behind the stumps.
Afghanistan tweak
• Fazalhaq Farooqi, another left-arm seamer, takes the place of Ziaur Rahman despite Ziaur’s three-for in the opener.
Recap of game one
Ibrahim Zadran’s unbeaten 87 and Darwish Rasooli’s 84 powered Afghanistan to 181 for 4. Ziaur, Rashid, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Noor Ahmad then shared the wickets as West Indies were restricted to 143.
Key talking points
– West Indies’ top order managed only 43 inside the Powerplay two nights ago; King and Evin Lewis will want a brisker start.
– Afghanistan’s spinners shared six wickets in the first outing; whether Motie and Pierre can mirror that impact for the Windies remains a quiet subplot.
– Simmonds’ extra pace offers variety to a Windies attack that looked samey on Sunday.
Teams
West Indies: Brandon King (capt), Alick Athanaze, Evin Lewis, Johnson Charles (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Quentin Sampson, Matthew Forde, Gudakesh Motie, Khary Pierre, Shamar Joseph, Ramon Simmonds.
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan (capt), Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
First ball is due shortly, and Dubai’s evening breeze suggests there might be just enough nip for the new-ball bowlers before the pitch flattens out.
