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Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy Tips - Proteas have an edge

By Sridhar Bhamidi

20 Feb 2025

Sridhar Bhamidi 20 Feb 2025

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Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy ODI match predictions to be played in Karachi on Friday, February 22
South Africa won 6 of their last 10 ODIs played in Pakistan
Afghanistan lost 2 matches they played in Pakistan

Can Afghanistan surprise South Africa? (Getty Images)

Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy

Group B action in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy starts on Friday with a match between Afghanistan and South Africa. The National Stadium in Karachi will host this match which will start at 2:30 pm IST.

Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy
Head to Head
Afghanistan Form
Afghanistan Team News
South Africa Form
South Africa Team News
Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy FAQs

Australia and England are the other two teams in this group, which means the winner of this match will boost their chances of staying in the knockout race. Both teams have been poor in the build-up to the tournament, but a full-strength South Africa is handy in any conditions. I am backing the Proteas to win here.

South Africa won 6 of their last 10 matches played in Pakistan (ODIs).
Afghanistan lost 2 matches they previously played in Pakistan (ODIs).
South Africa won 2 matches against Afghanistan in global tournaments (ODIs).
Rashid Khan has 9 wickets in his last 3 matches against South Africa (ODIs).

Head to Head

There have been five ODIs between Afghanistan and South Africa so far. The Protes won three, and the Afghans won two of those, with the last of those matches played in September 2024.

That was part of a three-match series between these sides in Sharjah that Afghanistan won 2-1. Rahmanullah Gurbaz (194 runs) sparkled for the Afghans with the bat, while Rashid Khan (seven wickets, ER 2.80) excelled with the ball. For the Proteas, it was Aiden Markram (92 runs) and Lungi Ngidi (four wickets) who topped the charts.

Afghanistan Form

Afghanistan are making their debut appearance in this tournament and will be looking to build on the confidence of reaching the semis of the 2024 T20 World Cup, where they lost to South Africa!

The last time the Afghans played a series in this format was in December 2024 when they toured Zimbabwe and won 2-0 with one match finishing without a result. Their preparation wasn’t good, though, losing the practice match to Pakistan Shaheens by 144 runs.

With eight wins in their last ten completed matches, Afghanistan are a threat to any side on their day. A lot will depend on how Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Rashid Khan turn up for the Asian side.

Afghanistan Team News

Afghanistan could bench Sediqullah Atal, Nangeyalia Kharote, Ikram Alikhil, and one of Gulbadin Naib or Naveed Zadran.

South Africa Form

South Africa played in the tri-series as a build-up to this tournament and lost both their matches to New Zealand and Pakistan. It was a makeshift side, though, as many regulars were playing in the SAT20 tournament.

In their practice match against the Shaheens, South Africa won by three wickets chasing 323. Wiaan Mulder shone with both bat and ball for the Proteas.

South Africa are the inaugural edition winners of this tournament but crashed out of the group stage in the last edition in 2017.

South Africa Team News

Corbin Bosch, Ryan Rickelton, and Tony de Zorzi may have to make up the bench here, although de Zorzi could be fighting Rassie van der Dussen for a spot. It could be a toss-up between Lungi Ngidi and Tabraiz Shamsi, although the latter could edge that contest.

Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy FAQs

Where can I watch the Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy live stream?

Our live streaming calendar shows you where to watch the Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy live stream.

What time does Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy start?

This Afghanistan vs South Africa Champions Trophy match is being played at the National Stadium in Karachi starting at 2:30 p.m. IST on Friday, February 21.

Verdict

Afghanistan v South Africa - One Day Match

There’s a lot of uncertainty around the South African unit that hasn’t quite played as a unit recently. That said, they have a number of match winners, which plays to their advantage. I am backing South Africa to start with a win.