South Africa captain Temba Bavuma and Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi stand throughout toss within the third Champions Trophy 2025 match on the Nationwide Financial institution Cricket Stadium on February 21, 2025. — Screengrab/Geo Information
KARACHI: South Africa received the toss and elected to bat first in opposition to Afghanistan within the third Champions Trophy 2025 match on the Nationwide Financial institution Cricket Stadium in Karachi on Friday.
After successful the toss, South Africa captain Temba Bavuma expressed confidence and mentioned that his group “will try to score well”. In the meantime, Shahidi mentioned that had they gone the opposite means, his group would have opted to bat.
“We will be happy if we start well,” he mentioned, including, “We have played good cricket against South Africa before.”
Earlier, throughout a pre-match press convention, Bavuma highlighted the challenges posed by Afghanistan’s spin-heavy assault and emphasised the significance of adapting to the circumstances in Karachi.
Bavuma had famous that the surfaces in Karachi have been batter-friendly, with groups persistently posting scores round 300 in current matches. Nonetheless, he emphasised the necessity for his bowling unit to stay disciplined and exact to counter the high-scoring development.
“Our challenge as a bowling unit is to be one of the more disciplined and precise bowling units,” he mentioned.
“From a batting point of view, scoreboard pressure is a big thing. Guys getting in, making sure they go big so we can challenge for those 330–350 type of scores.”
However, Shahidi highlighted his group’s success over time and claimed they’re prepared for the eight-team event, dismissing the notion of being beneath strain whereas dealing with South Africa, who boast a slight edge within the head-to-head report.
“A lot has changed since 2019 and recently, we beat them 2-1 in Sharjah. So, we have that confidence with us and we are not under any pressure because right now, we are focusing on what we can do in this tournament,” mentioned Shahidi.
“I believe our team is ready for this tournament and we are only focusing on our team so there is no pressure on us,” he added.
Enjoying XIs
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi(c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Noor Ahmad.
South Africa: Ryan Rickelton(w), Tony de Zorzi, Temba Bavuma(c), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi.
