Manchester: Struck by a series of injury setbacks, England will look to get the combination right when they take on the low-ranked but spirited Afghanistan in their bid get closer to a semi-final berth, here on Tuesday.
The hosts are struggling with fitness issues, the latest being captain Eoin Morgan having to leave the field with a back spasm during the game against the West Indies.
Opening batsman Jason Roy was also forced off the field during the same match due to a tight hamstring and has been ruled out of the game on Tuesday and Friday (against Sri Lanka).
Himself in doubt for the Afghanistan game, Morgan insisted there is no need to hit the panic button just yet. His fitness will be monitored over the next 24 hours before the final call is take on his participation on Tuesday.
In case Morgan isn’t fully fit, vice captain Jos Buttler is likely to lead the team which boasts of a strong bench strength that includes the likes of Tom Curran and Moeen Ali.
On the other hand, Afghanistan will be eager to post their first win.
Playing in their second World Cup, the bottom-placed Afghanistan lost all four of their matches till now to South Africa, Australia, Sri Lanka and New Zealand respectively.
However, the players from the war-torn nation can take confidence from the fact that they almost pulled off a win against Sri Lanka.
