Follow UsIn a virtual quarter-final, Australia take on Afghanistan in Match 10 of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on February 28 (Friday). Australia made an excellent start to the tournament, chasing down over 350 in their first match against England. Their second game against South Africa could not go ahead due to rains in Rawalpindi.
After a sedate start, Afghanistan bounced back against England in their second game to eke out an eight-wicket victory in Lahore to given themselves a chance of making it to the semis.
The last time these two sides met in an ODI was in the 2023 World Cup, where a double ton from Glenn Maxwell helped Australia pull a rabbit out of the hat.
Afghanistan
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Ikram Alikhil, Nangeyalia Kharote, Naveed Zadran
Australia
Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steven Smith(c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis(w), Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Sean Abbott, Tanveer Sangha
Afghanistan
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Australia
Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson
In India, Afghanistan vs Australia will be telecast live on Star Sports Network and streamed live on JioHotstar.
The Afghanistan vs Australia game will start at 2:30 PM (IST) in India.
You can buy the tickets for Pakistan vs Bangladesh here: https://pcb.tcs.com.pk/ICCTICKETS
Fantasy picks
Safe options: Josh Inglis (AUS), Nathan Ellis (AUS), Ibrahim Zadran (AFG), Azmatullah Omarzai (AFG)
Risky options: Spencer Johnson (AUS), Matthew Short (AUS), Sediqullah Atal (AFG), Rahmat Shah (AFG)
Matches 4 | AUS won 4 | AFG won 0
Afghanistan may have beaten Australia at the T20 World Cup, but Australia have been dominant against them when it comes to the ODIs. Afghanistan came close in Mumbai in 2023, but a freak innings from Glenn Maxwell took the game away from them.
However, given how they played against England, it will not be surprising if Afghanistan do pip Australia this time around. Moreover, the lack of experience in the Australian bowling line could give Afghanistan a sniff.
Josh Inglis is the man in form for Australia, having smashed an unbeaten 120 against England in their first match of the Champions Trophy. He has been their best Australian batter in ODIs since 2024, with 361 runs at 51.57, along with a strike rate of 118.75.
Azmatullah Omarzai is the third-highest wicket-taker among bowlers from full-members in ODIs since 2024. He has picked up 23 wickets at 19.34 in 16 matches in this period. Moreover, he is going into the match at the back of a 31-ball 41 and also a five-wicket haul.
It has been an even contest between pacers and spinners at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore in ODIs since 2024. However, the Pacers have fared fairly better, having picked up nearly 56% of the wickets, but they have been on the expensive side, having gone for 6.7 an over. It has been a high-scoring venue, with 328 being the average total here.
We could be in for a truncated game in Lahore, as it is expected to rain in the early stages of the match. However, will are certain to have some action, assuming that the groundsmen do their bit and drain the water quickly.