Pakistan advanced to the semifinals after winning four consecutive games in group 2, while their arch-rival India had a poor start to the T20 World Cup 2021 campaign.  Thankfully, the Indian team easily defeated the Afghan team by 66 runs in their third match. With this win, India are still in contention for a semifinal berth. However, the match between Afghanistan and New Zealand will ultimately determine the second semifinalist in Group 2. The match preview of the Afghanistan vs. New Zealand match is discussed in this article.    Notable T20I Records of Afghanistan and New Zealand Here are some notable records of Afghanistan and New Zealand in Twenty20 International. Significant T20I records: Afghanistan and New Zealand    Afghanistan New Zealand Most Runs Mohammad Shahzad (2011) Martin Guptill (3,069) Highest Score Hazratullah Zazai (162*) Brendon McCullum (123) Most Fifties Mohammad Shahzad (13) Martin Guptill (20) Most Wickets Rashid Khan (100) Tim Southee (102) Best Bowling Figures Rashid Khan (5/3) Tim Southee (5/18) Highest Partnership Hazratullah Zazai & Usman Ghani (236) DP Conway & GD Phillips (184) Most Catches Mohammad Nabi (47) Martin Guptill (61) Most Dismissals Mohammad Shahzad (57) Brendon McCullum (32) Most Matches Mohammad Nabi (85) Martin Guptill (105) Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read Dravid appointed Team India's new head coach Afghanistan Team    Afghanistan would have a huge test in the meeting against New Zealand. They must rejuvenate the team and need to identify an ideal playing XI, capable of posing a threat to New Zealand.    Afghanistan's bowling effort against India appeared to be ineffective because of the absence of off-spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Rashid khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Sharafuddin Ashraf all were expensive in the match. They must resolve the issue prior to the match against the Blackcaps. Mujeeb will surely make a comeback against New Zealand, which would be a big concern for the Kiwi side.    Read India get first points, beat Afghanistan at T20 World Cup Predicted Playing XI: Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad (wicket-keeper), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Usman Ghani, Mohammad Nabi (Captain), Najibullah Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Hamid Hassan New Zealand Team New Zealand batters fared well against Scotland. Particularly opener Martin Guptill had a good outing in the match. Therefore, they will go into the encounter against Afghanistan with full confidence. In comparison, New Zealand's bowling unit has shown more consistency and they must continue to do so again in this encounter as well. This might be a do-or-die encounter for the Kiwis, so they will give it everything they have got in this crucial battle.    Predicted Playing XI: Martin Guptill, Tim Seifert (wicket-keeper), Kane Williamson (C), Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Todd Astle, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Trent Boult. Read T20 World Cup: Imperious India post  210 vs Afghanistan  How AFG-NZ fixture would be the ultimate decider New Zealand and India have two games left, while Afghanistan have one game in hand in the Super 12 Round of the T20 World Cup 2021. New Zealand are anticipated to win over Namibia, but the match against Afghanistan will be difficult for them. The situation will change if New Zealand lose the match against Afghanistan.  On the other hand, India must win both of their remaining matches against Scotland and Namibia to be in contention for a semifinal berth. The team with the better run rates will advance to the semifinals if each of the three teams has six points.      Fixture: Afghanistan vs. New Zealand | Venue: Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi | Date: November 7  Read National Cricket: Khulna thrashes Dhaka with an innings defeat Verdict Afghanistan and New Zealand are now in second and third position in Group 2, however the fate of New Zealand in the competition is in their own hands. If they win the remainder of their Super 12 fixtures, they won't have to rely on the outcomes of other games. On the other hand, Afghanistan are ready to shatter their dream and they are more than capable of doing it. This will be one of the most exciting matches in the Super 12s of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.       

Afghanistan comprehensively outplayed Scotland in every department during their first Super 12 encounter of the ongoing World Cup tournament on Monday (October 25). Afghanistan triumphed by 130 runs and climbed to the top of Group 2 for the first time. As expected, Afghan spinners performed really well in this match. Particularly, off-spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman was very impressive with the ball. He claimed the first five wickets in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. Take a look at the list of all-time five-wicket hauls in the tournament’s history. T20 World Cup 2021: Afghanistan vs. Scotland Match Report Opting to bat first, all the Afghanistan batters played their part with the bat, putting up a mammoth 190/4 in the 20 overs to defend. Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Shahzad provided Afghanistan the perfect start with a 54-run opening partnership in power plays. Shahzad returned to the pavilion after a 22-run knock. However, Zazai (44) stayed at the crease till the tenth over, bringing the total to 82. Read T20 World Cup 2021: Afghanistan Win Big against Scotland as Mujeeb takes fifer The best partnership of the Afghanistan innings came in the third wicket. Two veteran middle order batsmen Rahmanullah Gurbaz (46) and Najibullah Zadran (47) put up an 87-run stand and took the total close to 200. Najibullah elated the Sharjah crowds by playing some big strokes in the middle. He made 59 off 34 balls, including three massive sixes. Scotland's most successful bowler was Safyaan Sharif. He took two wickets for 33 runs in four overs. Scotland got off to a good start in the run chase. George Munsey and Kyle Coetzer put on a 28-run partnership within the first four overs. Off-spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman interrupted their momentum in the fourth over, taking three wickets (Coetzer, Macleod, and Berrington). Scotland suddenly found themselves at 28/3. Read Afghanistan beat Scotland by 130 runs in T20 World Cup At the other end, leg-spinner Rashid Khan began to pick up wickets, and Scotland continued to lose wickets at regular intervals. Afghanistan just needed 10.2 overs to dismiss Scotland for 60 runs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman ended his spell with 5/20, while Rashid Khan took 4 wickets for only 9 runs in his spell. Munsey scored highest 25 runs for Scotland. Afghanistan made a spectacular start to their ICC T20 World Cup 2021 campaign. If the Afghan team wins at least two more games in group B, they have a fair chance to advance to the semifinals. List of Five-Wicket Hauls in T20 World Cup  Mujeeb Ur Rahman became the seventh bowler in T20 World Cup history to grab five wickets in an innings. Only seven bowlers bagged five wickets in the T20 format World Cup before him. Have a look at the players who have taken five-wicket in an innings.   Player Bowling Figure Opposition Ground Date Ajantha Mendis (SL) 4-2-8-6 Zimbabwe Hambantota 18/09/2012 Rangana Herath (SL) 3.3-2-3-5 New Zealand Chattogram 31/03/2014 Umar Gul (PAK) 3-0-6-5 New Zealand The Oval 13-06-2009 Ahsan Malik (NED) 4-0-19-5 South Africa Chattogram 27-03-2014 Mujeeb Ur Rahman (AFG) 4-0-20-5 Scotland Sharjah 25-10-2021 Mustafizur Rahman (BAN) 4-0-22-5 New Zealand Kolkata 26-03-2016 James Faulkner (NZ) 4-0-27-5 Australia Mohali 25-03-2016 Lasith Malinga (SL) 4-0-31-5 England Pallekele 01-10-2012 Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Way Forward  Afghanistan won the match against Scotland thanks to a collective effort. Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan, and Mujeeb Ur Rahman were the Afghani team's top performers. Rashid and Mujeeb rattled the Scottish batting order following a sensible batting effort by Afghanistan batters. Read Mujeeb rattles Scotland with three-wicket over Mujeeb Ur Rahman's first T20 five-wicket haul on the international stage came in this match. In total, he has taken 30 wickets in 20 Twenty20 Internationals. His precision and wicket-taking abilities will be crucial to Afghanistan in this competition. Undoubtedly, Mujeeb is one of the main bowlers to keep an eye on in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.