The Australia cricket team came up with two changes to their playing XI before coming to play the World Cup 2023 clash against Afghanistan in Mumbai on Tuesday. The Kangaroos roped in Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh while Steve Smith missed out. Meanwhile, Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and decided to bat first against Australia in a must-win game.
Australia's stalwart batter Steve Smith missed out on playing the game against the Afghan lions as he sustained an episode of vertigo. As of now, Smith has collected 205 runs in seven matches at an average of just 29 with one fifty.
"Not really too much. We would have batted first but we're fine with bowling first. Two changes. Steve struggled today and he misses out today. Cam Green also sits out. Maxwell and Marsh come into the side," Australia captain Pat Cummins said at the toss.
Afghanistan on the other hand made only one change with Naveen-ul-Haq replacing Fazalhaq Farooqi.
"We are gonna bat first. Because the wicket looks good as of now. We would hope that it would spin and seam later on. We have chased well in the recent games, but we have to look at how the pitch plays and see what are the ground dimensions as well. We have to look at the opposition as well. Obviously, he (Sachin Tendulkar) is a legend of the game. We were excited to see him and learn from him, he had some words for us, and we will try to learn from that," Shahidi said after winning the toss.
Afghanistan Playing XI: Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Naveen ul Haq.
Australia Playing XI: David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.