A dominant all-round performance saw South Africa outclassed Afghanistan by 107 runs in their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 clash at the National Bank Stadium on Friday.
Chasing a daunting 316-run target, Afghanistan’s batting unit unfolded on a meagre 208 in 43.3 overs despite a valiant innings from Rahmat Shah.
The middle-order batter waged a lone battle for Afghanistan, top-scoring with a gritty 90 off 91 deliveries, laced with nine fours and a six.
Besides him, no Afghanistan batter could pose a significant threat to the Proteas bowlers, with 18 each from Rashid Khan and Azmatullah Omarzai being the notable contributions.
Kagiso Rabada led the bowling charge for South Africa with three wickets, followed by Wiaan Mulder and Lungi Ngidi, who bagged two each, while Keshav Maharaj and Marco Jansen shared two between them.
Earlier, a scintillating maiden ODI century from Ryan Rickelton and a fiery half-century by Aiden Markram guided South Africa to a commanding total of 315/6.
Proteas notched up 315/6 in the allotted overs, thanks to Rickelton’s maiden ODI century and half-centuries of three South African batters — captain Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen and Markram.
