Afghanistan’s hopes are also pinned on this match being played at National Cricket Stadium in Karachi today
KARACHI: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-March 1st, 2025) England won the toss and chose to bat first against South Africa in the last Group B match of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 at National Bank cricket Stadium in Karachi on Saturday.
Aiden Markram is the captain of South Africa while Jos Buttler is leading England.
While today's contest is between England and South Africa, Afghanistan's hopes are also pinned on this match, as their semi-final qualification depends on the outcome.
For Afghanistan to qualify, England—already eliminated from the tournament—must defeat South Africa by a huge margin.
If England sets a target of 301 runs, they must restrict South Africa to 94 or win by 207 runs to lower South Africa's net run rate below Afghanistan’s—a difficult but necessary scenario for Afghanistan's semi-final chances.
On the other hand, if the match is washed out due to rain, South Africa will earn one point and secure a semi-final spot, effectively eliminating Afghanistan from the tournament.
Squads:
England: 1 Phil Salt, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Jamie Smith (wk), 4 Joe Root, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Jos Buttler (capt), 7 Liam Livingstone, 8 Jamie Overton, 9 Jofra Archer, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Saqib Mahmood
South Africa: 1 Ryan Rickelton, 2 Tristan Stubbs, 3 Rassie van der Dussen, 4 Aiden Markram, 5 Heinrich Klaasen (wk), 6 David Miller, 7 Wiaan Mulder, 8 Marco Jansen, 9 Keshav Maharaj, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Lungi Ngidi
