Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and chose to bowl first in the third ODI against Zimbabwe in Harare. With the three-match series tilted 1-0 in Afghanistan’s favor after the second ODI win and the first match being washed out, Zimbabwe face an uphill battle to level the series.
Afghanistan made two changes to their XI from their commanding 232-run win in the second ODI. Left-arm pacer Fareed Malik replaced Fazalhaq Farooqi in a like-for-like swap. Additionally, Afghanistan handed a debut to right-arm pacer Bilal Sami, who boasts an impressive record of 34 wickets in 18 List A games at an average of 24.64. Sami replaced Naveed Zadran, bolstering Afghanistan’s pace attack.
Zimbabwe also introduced two changes in their lineup. Joylord Gumbie returned to the side, taking Dion Myers’ spot at the top of the order. Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Wellington Masakadza replaced right-arm seamer Tinotenda Maposa, who had made his debut in the second ODI.
The match is pivotal for Zimbabwe, who are yet to defeat Afghanistan in a bilateral ODI series. Afghanistan holds a strong record against Zimbabwe, having won their last five ODI series against them since October 2015. Their first bilateral series in 2014 had ended in a 2-2 draw.
The lineups for the match are as follows:
Zimbabwe XI: Joylord Gumbie, Ben Curran, Craig Ervine (capt), Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani (wk), Wellington Masakadza, Newman Nyamhuri, Richard Ngarava, Trevor Gwandu.
Afghanistan XI: Sediqullah Atal, Abdul Malik, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Fareed Malik, Bilal Sami.
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