CWC 2019: Jason Holder looking forward to face Afghanistan in the upcoming World Cup

Afghanistan had beaten West Indies twice during the ICC World Cup Qualifiers last year.

By Salman Anjum - 19 May, 2019

West Indies captain Jason Holder is eagerly waiting to face Afghanistan in the upcoming ODI World Cup as Asia’s latest emerging cricket nation had defeated them twice last year.

During the 2018 ICC World Cup Qualifiers, Afghanistan had beaten the Caribbean side by three wickets in a Super Six match before registering a seven-wicket victory in the final. In fact, the overall head to head between the two teams is now 3-1 in favour of Afghanistan.

"I'm looking forward to playing Afghanistan, mainly because they beat us in the final of the World Cup qualifiers," Holder told ESPN in Barbados.

"I think in head-to-head contests they have probably edged us out, so I really want to get at them. They are a great team - a team in transition, and they've done wonderful things, but I really want to make amends for what happened in the Qualifiers."

The 12th edition of ICC Cricket World Cup will see ten teams facing each other in the round-robin phase before the knockouts. West Indies and Afghanistan are due to clash on July 4 at Headingley.

Asked to pick a favourite to win the World Cup, Holder said it is tough to choose one given the unexpected results in recent times.

"West Indies just beat England [the series was drawn 2-2], so you never quite know. It's just a matter of who plays the better cricket on a given day."

But the West Indies skipper was optimistic about his team’s chances, saying that the "underdogs" tag might work in their favour.

"I just go back to the World Cup Qualifiers, where we were seen as probably the favourites and the pressure was on us. But now we're seen as probably the underdogs and not much is expected of us. I think in years to come and especially after this World Cup, we'll put our names right up there," Holder said.

By Salman Anjum - 19 May, 2019

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