India vs Afghanistan: Will Virat Kohli’s struggle in opening order pose challenge in T20 World Cup match?

India vs Afghanistan: In a highly anticipated match, India is gearing up to face Afghanistan in their first Super 8 match of the T20 World Cup 2024 in Bridgetown, Barbados, today, June 20. Despite the recent weather challenges in the US, media reports assure that the weather will not disrupt today's match between India vs Afghanistan. 

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As per Sportingnews.com, the pitch at Kensington is known for its bounce, which could favour the bowlers. Due to the bounce, the initial overs of the game could be challenging for batsmen. The report also highlighted that the Kensington Oval has so far hosted 27 T20Is, of which 17 matches were won by the team batting first, while eight were won by the team batting second. However, two ended with no result.

Team India's opening order is currently facing a challenge, and the performance of key players like Kohli is under scrutiny. Kohli, who is opening with Captain Rohit Sharma, has failed to score runs in the tournament so far. In the India vs Ireland match on June 5, Kohli scored one run off five balls. In the next match against Pakistan, he scored five runs off three balls, while in the match against the US on June 12, Kohli was out for a golden duck. Some crickets, like legendary South African cricketer AB de Villiers, feel that Kohli is better batting at number three.

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On the other hand, it could be an advantage for Afghanistan. Their players, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, are currently in the tournament's top five players with the most runs. Gurbaz is at number three with 167 runs in four matches, and Zadran is at number five with 152 runs. Additionally, Afghanistan bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi is leading the bowling charts with 12 wickets. 

Despite this, the Google prediction meter shows that India has 80 percent chance of winning today's match against Afghanistan.

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India vs Afghanistan T20 World Cup match: When and how to watch

Star Sports Network will broadcast the T20 World Cup 2024 India vs Afghanistan match. Tune into Star Sports 1 HD and SD channels for English commentary. Star Sports 3 HD and SD channels will stream it in Hindi.

Those who want to catch the live cricket match stream online can do so on the Disney+ Hotstar app. The India vs Afghanistan T20I match on June 20 will start at 8 pm (India time).