Afghanistan keen to make point against WIndies

St Kitts: West Indies and Afghanistan get a three-match T20 International series underway at Warner Park on Friday with the visitors desperate to make an impression against the reigning kings of the game's most abbreviated format.

Yet despite their status as World T20 title-holders, the fact that the hosts are available at all to take on the fast-improving Afghans in the T20 matches in St Kitts followed by three One-Day Internationals in St Lucia is an embarrassing reflection of their continuing decline in the 50-over version of the international game.

This two-week campaign in the Caribbean is overshadowed by the Champions Trophy in England, featuring the top eight nations in ODI's.

Afghanistan's historic first series against the West Indies is only possible because the 2004 Champions Trophy winners and twice-beaten finalists failed for the first time to qualify for a global International Cricket Council event and are also in danger of having to go through a qualifying tournament next year in Bangladesh to get to the 2019 World Cup, also to be played in England.

Since the dramatic victory over England in the World T20 final 14 months ago in Kolkata, West Indies have won just two of nine T20 Internationals.

In sharp contrast, Afghanistan are on an 11-match winning streak although the significance of that achievement is tempered by the fact that 10 of those wins were also against Associate Member nations, the lower rank of competing countries under the banner of the ICC.

Teams from

West Indies: Carlos Brathwaite (c), Samuel Badree, Ronsford Beaton, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard, Rovman Powell, Marlon Samuels, Lendl Simmons, Jerome Taylor, Chadwick Walton, Kesrick Williams

Afghanistan: Asghar Stanikzai (c), Farid Ahmad, Javed Ahmadi, Noor Ali, Usman Ghani, Hamza Hotak, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Samiullah Shenwari, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Dawlat Zadran, Najibullah Zadran, Shapoor Zadran

Match facts
Friday Jun 2, 2017 (day/night)
Start time 19:30 local | 23:30 GMT

Scores	Upcoming	Results
South Africa vs Pakistan - 3rd ODI 4th Test - Australia v India - December 26-30, 23:30 GMT 1st Test - Zimbabwe v Afghanistan - December 26-30, 07:30 GMT 3rd ODI - Zimbabwe v Afghanistan at Harare Afghanistan won by 8 wickets (with 139 balls remaining) 3rd T20I - West Indies v Bangladesh at St Vincent Bangladesh won by 80 runs

West Indies, Afghanistan 3rd ODI rained off [+]

The match has been called off with the toss and 3-match ODI series drawn 1-1.

WI survive low scoring game to level series [+]

West Indies overcame a mini collapse on their way to a series-levelling four-wicket victory in a low-scoring against Afghanistan in St Lucia on Sunday.

Rashid Special as Afghanistan stun West Indies [+]

Rashid Khan destroyed the West Indies batting line-up with outstanding figures of seven for 18 to bowl Afghanistan to a stunning 63-run victory.

Samuels fifty completes West Indies sweep [+]

Marlon Samuels was at his most imperious with an unbeaten 89 to guide the West Indies to a seven-wicket victory in final T20 at Warner Park on Monday.

West Indies rout Afghanistan Seal T20 series [+]

West Indies to complete a series-clinching 29-run win on the Duckworth Lewis System in the rain-affected second T20 at Warner Park in St Kitts on Saturday.

Narine shines in West Indies six wicket win [+]

Sunil Narine snared three wickets and mesmerised Afghanistan to set up a six-wicket win for the West Indies in St Kitts on Friday.

Afghan keen to make point against WI [+]

West Indies and Afghanistan get a three-match T20 International series underway at Warner Park in St Kitts on Friday.

Afghanistan name squad for Windies tour [+]

Chief selector Nowroz Mangal on Tuesday announced squad first-ever bilateral series against West Indies scheduled to be played in June.

Beaton called up for Afghanistan T20Is [+]

West Indies squad to face Afghanistan in a three-match Twenty20 series in June.

West Indies host Afghanistan for ODIs and T20Is [+]

Afghanistan will embark on a limited-overs tour of the Caribbean for the first time in June of this year.