Lahore: Batting first, Afghanistan scored 273 runs in an important match of Group B of ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The brilliant performance of openers Sediqullah Atal (85 runs, 95 balls) and Azamtullah Omarzai (67 runs, 63 balls) took the team to a strong score.
Gurbaz got out cheaply, Atal and Zadran handled the innings
Winning the toss and opting to bat first, Afghanistan had a bad start when Rahmanullah Gurbaz was dismissed early. After this, Ibrahim Zadran (22 runs) and Atal took charge of the innings by sharing 69 runs for the second wicket.
Omarzai's explosive innings in the middle order
In the middle order, Azamtullah Omarzai strengthened the team by scoring a quick 67 runs. However, the Australian bowlers made a comeback in the death overs and bundled out Afghanistan for 273 runs in 50 overs.
Performance of Australian bowlers
Ben Dwarshuis (3/47) was the most successful bowler for Australia, taking two wickets in the last over. Spencer Johnson (2/49) and Adam Zampa (2/48) also took important wickets.
Important match in the race for the semi-finals
This match is a "do or die" situation for both the teams. Australia had won by five wickets against England, but their match against South Africa was washed out due to rain. At the same time, Afghanistan defeated England by eight runs and knocked them out of the tournament.
South Africa (3 points) top the Group B points table, Australia are second with the same points, but their net run rate is weak. Afghanistan are third with two points and with today's win they can make it to the semi-finals.
England are out of the tournament and will now play their last league match against South Africa in Karachi on Saturday.
Brief Scorecard:
Afghanistan – 273/10 (50 overs)
(Sediqullah Atal 85, Azmatullah Omarzai 67; Ben Dwarshuis 3/47, Spencer Johnson 2/49, Adam Zampa 2/48)
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