Loser of Afghanistan and England set to bow out of Champions Trophy on Wednesday
While the qualifying teams from Group A are all decided, in Group B it is set to go down to the wire – although the team which loses at the Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday will be eliminated from the tournament.
England and Afghanistan have only met three times previously in ODI’s. England won the first two, but the most recent meeting, in October 2023 saw Afghanistan running out winners by 69 runs.
Afghanistan v England | Champions Trophy Game 8 | Wednesday 25 February 2025 | Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore | 11:00am
Venue:
This is expected to be a good surface for scoring runs. While the ball may offer some assistance to the seamers early on, it’s expected to get better for shot making as the ball gets older. Spin is likely to play a key role in the middle overs.
The last game played at this venue was the high-scoring encounter between England and Australia in game four of the Champions Trophy. England posted a massive 351 for eight off the back of Ben Duckett’s knock of 165. But Australia chased down the target to complete what was the most successful ever run chase in an ICC event as Josh Inglis led the charge with a superb 120. Expect the runs to flow again on Wednesday.
Recent form (most recent game first):
Afghanistan: L, W, W, NR, W.
England: L, L, L, L, L.
Key players:
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz
He’s a dominant force at the top of the order and a batsman who has the ability to dramatically influence the course of a match. When the two sides met previously, back in 2023, it was Gurbaz who set the tone with a sparkling knock of 80 runs from 57 balls. His highest ODI score is 151 and he averages a shade under 40 in the format with eight hundreds and six fifties. He’s one of the key players in Afghanistan’s rise as a force in ODI cricket and he’s the man to watch on Wednesday. He failed last time out against South Africa, but he is worth backing as top scorer for Afghanistan on Wednesday.
England: Jofra Archer
England’s batting was not a problem in their tournament opener against Australia. A score of 351 should have been defendable. But it wasn’t. If England are going to break their disastrous run of recent ODI losses, they will need their bowlers to step up and Jofra Archer will be key to the process. England have acted smartly following the injury to Brydon Carse by replacing him with a spinner, in the form of Rehan Ahmed. He may well be pushed straight into action. But Archer will be key with his pace and bounce potentially the key to unsettling the Afghanistan batsman. Kagiso Rabada did a great job for South Africa against Afghanistan and Jofra will hope for similar success.
Verdict: Afghanistan
This is a tough one to call. England are struggling at the moment, battling with confidence and somewhat lost in the ODI ocean. They have also looked somewhat troubled by quality spin in recent games and in Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad and Mohammad Nabi, Afghanistan have three quality slow
bowlers at their disposal. The Asian side seem to have a greater sense of purpose and a collective focus, they are playing in front of what should be a supportive crowd and with any inferiority complexes of the past long gone, Afghanistan should edge this.
