Afghanistan is set to face New Zealand in their opening match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday, 8 February. Equipped with a strong batting lineup and solid bowling strength, both teams will be looking to start their T20 World Cup on a positive note. 

 

Afghanistan

 

Afghanistan has improved in recent years. From the underdogs, they have been consistently delivering at the big stages to carve their name in the history books. The team is looking solid under the leadership of Rashid Khan. The batting lineup will be led by the opening aggressive duo of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, followed by Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, and Mohammad Nabi. On the bowling front, the teams possess a good strength; the trio of Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmed, and Mujeeb Ur Rahman can create havoc on any batting lineup. Fazalhaq Farooqi and Azmatullah Omarzai will lead the pace bowling attack.

 

New Zealand

 

New Zealand might not be at their best in this format, but they are a team that nobody should take lightly. Their performance in the last few series has been disappointing, losing to big teams like Australia and India. However, they become a different team in the ICC tournaments, bringing out their best at the global stage with their firepower squad. Their batting attack is led by the aggressive duo of Tim Seifert and Devon Conway, joining them are Finn Allen, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, and Michael Bracewell. The bowling attack will be lead by Matt Henry, while the spin duo of Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi will take of spin department.

 

AFG vs NZ Match Details

 

AFG vs NZ T20I WC Match Details
Match	Afghanistan vs New Zealand 4th T20I Match
Date and Time	Sunday, February 8; 11:00 a.m. IST
Venue	MA Chidambaran Stadium, Chennai
Broadcasting and live streaming	TV-Star Sports Network, Live Stream-JioHotstar

 

AFG vs NZ T20 WC Pitch Report

 

The surface in Chennai is expected to offer good help for the batters early on, but as the match progresses, the batters will find a way to score against the hard length deliveries. The surface offers good pace and bounce during the early hours of the match, helping the batters in picking up their desired shots. As the match progresses, spinners will extract good turn from the track. The first inning total at this venue is likely to be around 170.

 

AFG vs NZ T20 WC Weather Report

 

The weather in Chennai is expected to remain warm and humid, with no rain predicted during the game. As this is a morning game, the surroundings are expected to be warm and pleasant. The temperatures are likely to hover around 27-32 °C, under mostly clear skies.

 

AFG vs NZ Head-to-Head Records

 

AFG vs NZ head-to-head (in T20s)
Match Played	2
Won by Afghanistan	1
Won by New Zealand	1
Tied	0
No Result	0

 

AFG vs NZ Probable XI

 

• Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan (c), Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

 

• New Zealand: Devon Conway (wk), Finn Allen, Tim Seifert, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Ish Sodhi, Glenn Phillips, MitchellSantner (c), Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Michael Bracewell

 

Players To Watch Out For in the AFG vs NZ Match

 

• Darwish Rasooli | AFG: This 26-year-old batter was their standout batter in the last T20I series against the West Indies, where he smashed 156 runs in three matches, including two half-centuries. He continued his form and scored 117 in two warm-up games he played, with 84 runs against Scotland in the first match. He is likely to continue his form in this tournament as well and will be a batter to watchout for.

 

• Tim Siefert | NZ: Tim Siefert is currently one of the best attacking players in the world, especially in this format. He starts his attack from the first ball itself and goes berserk as he keeps playing the ball. He played a giant knock against the USA in the recent warm-up game, scoring 66 runs from 31 balls. If he delivers at the top, the team is likely to get maximum benefit. 

 

AFG vs NZ Toss Prediction

 

Historical Toss-Winning Stats at the Venue

 

• In the last 3 T20 matches played at this venue, the team winning the toss has opted to bowl first in all three matches.

 

Advantages of Bowling First on This Pitch

 

• In the total of 3 T20I matches played at this venue so far, the teams that batted first have won 1 match, and bowling first have won 2 matches.

 

AFG vs NZ Today's Match Scenario

 

Scenario 1

 

• Toss Winner: AFG (opts to bowl first)


• Power-Play Score: 40-45


• NZ Total: 170-180


• Match Winner: New Zealand

 

Scenario 2

 

• Toss Winner: NZ (opts to bowl first)


• Power-Play Score: 40-42


• AFG Total: 150-160


• Match Winner: New Zealand

 

Who will win today's AFG vs NZ T20 World Cup match?

 

New Zealand will start this game as the favourite to win. These two teams have one game each against each other. New Zealand has dynamic players in their squad, capable of winning any game single-handedly. But Afghanistan aren't underdogs anymore, they have proved their quality over these years, especially in the last T20 World Cup.