Lahore: Afghanistan registered a historic victory in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 at the Gaddafi Stadum here on Wednesday, knocking out England and securing their first win of the tournament. With this result, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and England are all out of contention, while Afghanistan’s campaign remains alive in stunning fashion.
Azmatullah Omarzai delivered a stellar all-round performance, justifying his accolade as the ICC ODI Player of the Year. After playing a crucial knock of 41 off 31 balls with the bat, he turned the match on its head with the ball, scalping five key wickets to overshadow Joe Root’s valiant 120 off 111 balls.
Batting first, Afghanistan rode on a sensational innings from opener Ibrahim Zadran, who smashed a monumental 177, guiding his team to a formidable total of 325/7. Zadran’s innings, one of the best ever in Champions Trophy history, single-handedly propelled Afghanistan to a defendable total.
Despite early setbacks, he anchored crucial partnerships, adding 103 runs with skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (40), 72 runs with Omarzai (41), and 24 vital runs with Mohammad Nabi (40). His knock, laced with 12 boundaries and six sixes, was a blend of resilience and calculated aggression.
England’s chase started on a shaky note, but Root and Ben Duckett (38) steadied the innings, keeping the required run rate in check. However, Duckett’s departure triggered a collapse as Harry Brook (25) and Jos Buttler (38) failed to convert their starts.
The momentum briefly swung in England’s favour when Jofra Archer struck a few boundaries late in the innings, but Jamie Overton’s (32) reckless shot saw him hole out at long-on, turning the tide back towards Afghanistan. The Afghan bowling duo of Fazalhaq Farooqi (1/62) and Azmatullah held their nerve in the death overs, securing a famous win for their side.
Azmatullah’s match-winning five-wicket haul saw him lifted on his teammates’ shoulders as Afghanistan celebrated yet another giant-killing act on the world stage. Their consistency in ICC events is no longer an anomaly – they are now a formidable force capable of toppling cricketing heavyweights at will.
Archer (3/64) was the pick of the English bowlers, while Jamie Overton (1/72), Adil Rashid (1/60), and Liam Livingstone (2/28) chipped in with wickets but failed to contain the Afghan onslaught.
With this dramatic result, Afghanistan have made a compelling statement in the tournament, reinforcing their rise in world cricket. UNI
