Summary

  • India win to avoid early exit

  • India power to 210-2

  • Rohit 74 (47), Rahul 69 (48)

  • Rohit & Rahul add 140 in 14.4 overs

  • Pandya 35* (13), Pant 27* (13)

  • Afghanistan 144-7 - rally from 69-5

  • Limit net run-rate damage

  • Shami 3-32, recalled Ashwin 2-14

  • Super 12, Group 2, Abu Dhabi

Live Reporting

Thomas Mallows and Kal Sajad

  1. Abhishek Jhunjhunwala
    Former IPL batter on BBC Test Match Special

    There has been a lot of chat about Ashwin playing T20 cricket - it's good news he's finally playing. He will bring something to the table.

  2. It's KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma who stride out first for India. It looks like skipper Mohammad Nabi will open the bowling for Afghanistan.

  3. Abhishek Jhunjhunwala
    Former IPL batter on BBC Test Match Special

    It is a brilliant toss to win. Any team watching India struggle in the first two matches would have elected to bowl first.

  4. The equation is simple for India. Lose and they are out. For Afghanistan, a win is not enough to seal their place in the semi-finals but it would be a giant step towards that aim.

  5. The teams

    India make two changes from the New Zealand game. The fit-again Suryakumar Yadav comes in Ishan Kishan, while Ravi Ashwin replaces the injured Varun Chakravarthy.

    Afghanistan make one change with Sharafuddin Ashraf replacing former captain Asghar Afghan, who retired after Sunday's win against Namibia. The influential Mujeeb Ur Rahman is still sidelined.

    India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (capt), Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.

    Afghanistan: Hazratullah Zazai, Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi (capt), Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Rashid Khan, Karim Janat, Naveen-ul-Haq, Hamid Hassan.

  6. India captain Virat Kohli: "There's no denying the fact the situation is a tricky one, but there is a chance and we are going to go out and play positive cricket.

    "We know we haven't played to our potential. Whatever the reasons might be we have to brush them to one side and focus on today.

    "We would have bowled first, but it's not a bad thing against a side like Afghanistan who like to put runs on the board and use their spin bowlers in the second half.

    "So it's an opportunity for us on a fresh pitch to put big runs on the board and take it from there."

  7. Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi: "We prepared for both options, but will bowl first. The last game here there was a lot of dew later on. We will play our normal cricket and just go out and enjoy it."

  8. Afghanistan win toss and bowl

    An early boost for Afghanistan - captain Mohammad Nabi wins the toss and unsurprisingly chooses to bowl first.

  9. India, one of the pre-tournament favourites, suddenly find themselves on the brink after successive defeats by Pakistan and New Zealand, leaving them second from bottom in Group 2.

    Afghanistan, meanwhile, are second with two wins from three games, giving themselves a great chance of reaching the semi-finals.

    It means India must beat Afghanistan and then hope Afghanistan beat New Zealand later this week.

  10. Good afternoon

    Welcome to our second 20 World Cup text commentary of the day - and it's a big one.

    India take on a buoyant Afghanistan needing a win to keep their tournament hopes alive.