Sri Lanka have a spotless record over Afghanistan at the World Cup, winning two out of two matches. In 2019, they prevailed by 34 runs after restricting their opponents from chasing a DLS-revised target of 187 in 41 overs.

They are coming into this match with an eight-wicket win against title-holders England. The late inclusion of Angelo Mathews in the squad as an injury replacement has bolstered their line-up. Playing against England, Mathews bowled for the first time since the global lockdown and picked up 2-14 from his five overs. Sri Lanka have batted well, but their bowling has put them down. With two wins from five games and a net run-rate of -0.205, they are placed fifth on the points table.

Another injury blow to Sri Lanka

In their latest injury setback, Lahiru Kumara, who took 3-35 in his last match to be named the Player of the Match, was ruled out because of a thigh injury, making way for pacer Dushmantha Chameera in the squad. Earlier, Chamika Karunaratne and Mathews had been called in as replacements for injured Dasun Shanaka and Matheesha Pathirana.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan have finally managed to break the jinx of succumbing in crunch situations against arch rivals Pakistan. After several close games lately between the two sides, Afghanistan prevailed for the first time in eight meetings. Their other win came against England.

On both occasions, spin played a big part for them. With two wins from five matches, they are two spots below Sri Lanka on the points table at seventh place, because of their inferior net run rate of -0.969.

Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan, where to watch live: TV channels and live streaming for SL vs AFG

Sri Lanka: TV – TV1, Sirasa TV, Shakthi TV. Live streams: sirasatv.lk

Afghanistan: Live stream – arianatelevision.com, sports.afghan-wireless.com, ariananews.af (highlights, Australia v South Africa, South Africa Vs Netherlands, semi-finals and final only)

India: TV – Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports 1 Hindi, Star Sports 1 Hindi HD, Star Sports 1 Telugu, Star Sports 1 Telugu HD, Star Sports 1 Tamil, Star Sports 1 Tamil HD, Star Sports 1 Kannada. Live stream – Disney+ Hotstar

UK: TV – Sky Sports Cricket, Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Mix, Sky Showcase, CHANNEL 5 (highlights). Live stream – SkyGO, Sky Sports App, MY5 App (highlights)

Australia: TV – FOX CRICKET, FOX505, FOX503, Channel 9, HD 9GEMHD. Live stream – FoxtelGo, FoxtelNOW, Kayo, NineNow

South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa: TV – SuperSport Grandstand, SuperSport Cricket, SuperSport Action. Live stream – SuperSport app

Continental Europe and SEA (excluding Singapore): Live stream – YuppTV

Bangladesh: TV – GTV, T Sports. Live stream – Rabbithole

Pakistan: TV – PTV Sports, PTV National, A-Sports. Live streams: ptvflix, Daraz, Jazz, ARY ZAP

New Zealand: TV – Sky Sport. Live stream — skygo.co.nz, skysportnow.co.nz

New Zealand: TV – Sky Sport. Live stream — skygo.co.nz, skysportnow.co.nz

Canada: TV – Willow TV. Live stream – Willow TV

The Caribbean: TV – ESPN, ESPN2. Live stream – ESPN Play Caribbean

Central & South America and Mexico: Live stream – ESPN+

Hong Kong: TV – TV channel: Astro Cricket via NowTV. Live stream – YuppTV

Maldives, Nepal, Bhutan: Live stream – Yupp TV

Malaysia: TV – Astro Cricket. Live streams – AstroGO, Yupp TV

MENA: TV – Criclife, CricLife Max (UAE only). Live stream – StarzPlay, Switch TV

Singapore: TV – HubSports 4, HubSports 5. Live stream – StarHub TV+

USA: TV – WillowTV. Live stream – ESPN+ app