Afghanistan beat England in a thrilling Champions Trophy fixture on Wednesday (February 26), knocking their opponents out of the tournament.
Afghanistan knock England out of 2025 Champions Trophy
Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and chose to bat first, a decision that looked unwise as Jofra Archer's opening burst meant they were reduced to 39-3 in the first 10 overs.
But Shahidi came together with opener Ibrahim Zadran to rescue the innings, as they shepherded the side to 81-3 after 20 overs, still below a par rate on a good batting track. But they soon began to accelerate, before Shahidi was dismissed for 40 in the 30th over.
Match 8, Afghanistan vs England
vs
- Ball by ball Over
Zadran continued on, making his way past triple figures. In the back half of the innings, he exploded, slamming his way to 177 off 146 balls and setting a world record with his second 150-plus score in ODI cricket. Cameos from Azmatullah Omarzai (41) and Mohammad Nabi (40) also helped them reach 325-7.
In response, England lost the two early wickets of Phil Salt and Jamie Smith, sliding to 30-2. After Ben Duckett and Joe Root stabilised the innings, there was a double blow and they fell to 133-4.
Read more: Fastest to 1000 ODI runs: Ben Duckett equals England record, joint-fourth on all-time list
Jos Buttler then joined Root in the middle, and the pair put on 83 runs for the fifth wicket before Buttler had to depart for 38. Liam Livingstone came and went soon after, but Root continued to soldier on, until he was dismissed by Omarzai for 120, his first ODI century since 2019.
Once Root went, Jamie Overton kept England's hopes alive with a few lusty blows before he was caught for 32. With 13 required off the last over, and last-wicket pair Adil Rashid and Mark Wood in the middle, they could only manage four before Rashid was caught on the boundary by Zadran to seal an Afghanistan victory by eight runs. Omarzai finished with 5-58.
What does the result mean for Group B?
There are two matches remaining in Group B – Afghanistan vs Australia, and England vs South Africa. The following table lays out which teams will qualify with each set of results.
| AFG vs AUS | ENG vs SA | 1st | 2nd |
| AFG | ENG | AFG | SA |
| AFG | SA | SA | AFG |
| AFG | NR | AFG | SA |
| AUS | ENG | AUS | SA |
| AUS | SA | SA | AUS |
| AUS | NR | AUS | SA |
| NR | ENG | AUS | SA/AFG |
| NR | SA | SA | AUS |
| NR | NR | SA | AUS |
Net run rate considerations are almost entirely out of the equation. Only if the Afghanistan-Australia match ends without a result and England beat South Africa, will there be a tie on points between South Africa and Afghanistan, for second place.
But even then, England would have to defeat South Africa by over 200 runs in order to knock the Proteas down to third place and help Afghanistan qualify alongside Australia.
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