Brandon King and Charles are at the crease. Brandon King is on strike. Fazalhaq Farooqi will open the attack

The players make their way to the middle for their respective National Anthems - Afghanistan first and it will be followed by West Indies.

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High of 31 degrees today and also a small chance of rain, and the wind is more than 20kmph today. The square boundaries are 63m to one side and 72m to the other side and the straight boundary is 77m. Looks like a fantastic wicket, the two previous games have been high-scoring. There’s a nice even covering of grass, there are a few cracks but they are not moving that much. There’s going to be good bounce on this wicket, mention Matthew Hayden and Natalie Germanos in their pitch report

Teams:

West Indies (Playing XI): Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran(w), Shai Hope, Rovman Powell(c), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Obed McCoy

Afghanistan (Playing XI): Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi

Powell: It is more to gain than to lose, it's a good opportunity for us to play good cricket.

Afghanistan have won the toss and have opted to field

Rashid Khan: We are gonna bowl. It's just about making sure how we go about the run-chase. Also, with the oppsition, it is best to bowl first. We have to adjust quickly, we have seen a couple of games here,

Afghanistan have won the toss and have opted to field

The co-hosts, West Indies, have been on the money as well. Papua New Guinea did test them strongly though but eventually they emerged victorious. After that, they overcame Uganda with nonchalance. In their last game against New Zealand, they were in a precarious situation with the bat but Rutherford played a knock for the ages on a tricky surface. The southpaw’s contribution proved to be the differential point in their 13-run victory over the Kiwis. Today’s match certainly promises to be a thrilling affair! Stick around for the toss and team lineups...

19:30 Local Time, 23:30 GMT, 05:00 IST: The 2024 T20 World Cup is approaching its business end and the excitement is building up. This is the final group game before the Super 8 stage kicks off. Both West Indies and Afghanistan are unbeaten in the tournament so far and have already qualified for Super 8. But, both teams wouldn’t want to lose momentum at such an important juncture. Afghanistan have been brilliant. Farooqi has been lethal with the new ball while Rashid Khan has found his mojo again. The duo of Gurbaz and Zadran has been on song. Clinical wins against lower-ranked sides like Uganda and Papua New Guinea was on the cards. But, the way the Afghani bowlers demolished New Zealand shows their prowess. The only chink in their armour is perhaps that their middle order has been short of runs. Apart from that, they have functioned as a well-oiled unit.

Preview

The burden of being a West Indies team in a white-ball World Cup at home is not lost on Rovman Powell, the incumbent captain. They after play their next game at a stadium named after Daren Sammy, where the stakes are lowered but momentum is still fiercely sought. After the ignominy of not qualifying for the 50-over event in India last year, West Indies are playing with the pressure of needing to 'bring back the glory days', which Sammy last did in 2012 and 2016. That too, is not lost on Powell.

Afghanistan don't carry any baggage from the past, but there's an unmentioned responsibility to make a successful team out of their globe-trotting T20 stars. To add title credence to their golden generation of Rashids and Noors and Gurbazs. With three wins in three, West Indies and Afghanistan are blemish-free in the group stage but Tuesday perhaps represents their first big test of the tournament. Both teams expectedly went past the lower-ranked PNG and Uganda, while also taking two points off an undercooked New Zealand side. The face-off on Tuesday has nothing weighing on it with regards to progression but both West Indies and Afghanistan have already denied letting thoughts of it being a dead-rubber permeate in the dressing rooms. For as far as they're concerned, this is another important hoop to jump through before the competitiveness in the tournament is taken up a notch.

When: West Indies vs Afghanistan, 40th Match, Men's T20 World Cup 2024, June 18, 08:30 PM Local time, 06:00 AM IST

Where: Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, St. Lucia

What to expect: Runs once again. 180 has been chased and the 200-mark has been breached in two games so far. Both sides with batting adventurism will look forward to getting out there and swing for the fences

Team Watch

West Indies

The hosts should keep the same side that has earned them three wins in three.

Tactics & Matchups: Akeal Hosein and Gudakesh Motie could be West Indies' weapons against the high-flying Rahmanullah Gurbaz. The Afghanistan opener has trouble putting away left-arm spinners, scoring at only 101.63 against them in 17 T20I innings since 2021. He has also been dismissed five times by them. If Gurbaz steers clear of Hosein in the PowerPlay, he will then go face-to-face with Motie through the middle-overs.

Probable XI: Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran(w), Roston Chase, Rovman Powell(c), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie

Afghanistan

No reason for Afghanistan to tinker with their winning combination.

Tactics & Matchups: A feisty contest awaits us when Johnson Charles squares off against the two wrist spinners - Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmed. Against their ilk, the West Indies opener has scored at strike rates of 166.07 in 10 innings but has also been dismissed six times by them in T20Is since 2021. Shimron Hetmyer has struggled against wrist spinners too, scoring 115 runs off 142 balls at a strike rate of 80.99.

Probable XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi

Did you know:

- Johnson Charles is the highest run getter at this venue in T20s, with 939 runs in 31 innings at a strike rate of 135.10

- Fazalhaq Farooqi has been the standout bowler in this tournament, conceding runs at 4.25, 1.50 and 3.75 in the PowerPlay, middle-overs and the death respectively. He is the leading wicket-taker with 12 scalps.

- Akeal Hosein has 5 PowerPlay wickets in 48 deliveries, and has conceded at only 4 runs an over in this phase

What they said:

"It's been a big opportunity for the guys to play World Cup cricket in their home countries. We started in Guyana with Shimron Hetmyer, Romario Shepherd, Shamar Joseph, and Gudakesh Motie, playing in front of their home crowd. And then we went to Trinidad with Akeal Hosein and Nicholas Pooran. Now it's time for Johnson Charles to put on a show for his fellow St. Lucians." - West Indies captain Rovman Powell

"I said to them [the players], one day if you look back, and you were a youngster and I said you were going to play against the West Indies in St. Lucia in a World Cup, you would have bitten someone's hand off for that opportunity. So don't let this opportunity pass you by just because there's nothing on the line with regards to qualification. [There's] Pride playing for your country." - Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott

Squads:

West Indies Squad: Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran(w), Roston Chase, Rovman Powell(c), Sherfane Rutherford, Akeal Hosein, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Obed McCoy, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Shamar Joseph

Afghanistan Squad: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Mohammad Ishaq, Nangeyalia Kharote