Afghanistan vs Australia Champions Trophy 2025 Match Preview

Image credits: AP

The Afghanistan team, led by skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi, has planned for the entire Australian side and is not just focused on its bete noire Glenn Maxwell, as they seek to get the better of Australia at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and book a semifinal berth. Afghanistan's victory against England sparked wild celebrations in the Afghan capital of Kabul, and they will be looking to carry that momentum into their match against Australia.

Australia, on the other hand, has a strong team with players like Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, and Glenn Maxwell, who can change the course of the game with their batting and bowling skills. The pitch at the Gaddafi Stadium is expected to be conducive to batting, with the first game at the venue seeing Australia chase down a mammoth 351, and the second game seeing over 600 runs scored overall. The weather forecast suggests a possibility of rain in the morning, but it is expected to be mostly cloudy and cool in the afternoon, with a temperature of around 20 degrees centigrade throughout the day.

The match between Afghanistan and Australia is expected to be a high-scoring encounter, with both teams having a strong batting lineup. Afghanistan's Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad will be looking to use their spin bowling skills to restrict the Australian batsmen, while Australia's Adam Zampa will be looking to use his wrist spin to dismiss the Afghan batsmen. The key battles to watch out for will be between Azmatullah Omarzai and Glenn Maxwell, Rashid Khan and Travis Head, and Adam Zampa and Ibrahim Zadran.

The squads for the match are as follows:

• Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Ikram Alikhil, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Nangyal Kharoti, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Farid Malik, Naveed Zadran
• 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, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Sean Abbott, Tanveer Sangha

The winner of the match will advance to the semifinals, while the loser will face potential elimination. Afghanistan will be looking to create history by reaching the semifinals of a 50-over ICC tournament for the first time, while Australia will be looking to continue their dominance in ICC tournaments.

The Champions Trophy 2025 has seen some exciting matches so far, and the encounter between Afghanistan and Australia is expected to be one of the most thrilling matches of the tournament. With the pitch expected to be batting-friendly and the weather forecast suggesting a possibility of rain, the match is expected to be a high-scoring encounter. The team that wins the match will take a significant step towards reaching the semifinals, and the loser will face a tough task to qualify for the next round.

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