Afghanistan vs England Match Highlights
On February 26, 2025, the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore was the venue of a thrilling contest between Afghanistan and England in the 8th match of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. It was a do-or-die affair for both teams, who lost their opening matches: Afghanistan against South Africa and England versus Australia, and were desperate to keep their semifinal hopes alive. High stakes, an agitated crowd, there was everything in place for a match that would eventually see Afghanistan pull off a sensational 8-run win, dumping England out of the tournament and strengthening its stature in world cricket.
With a clear sky overhead, the match-day began with the toss-winning Afghan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi opting to bat first. It was a tactical decision; the Lahore pitch had historically favored batsmen and with the dew expected to settle in during the evening, bowling second could be challenging. England made some changes to their XI, with the injured Brydon Carse being replaced by all-rounder Jamie Overton, who was there in the hope, perhaps, that his pace and lower-order hitting might turn things around. Meanwhile, Afghanistan had retained their line-up that faced South Africa, banking on the continuity—and confidence—of their line-up.
As the Afghan openers walked out, England’s bowlers, led by Jofra Archer, made no bones about seizing the upper hand. Archer was electric from the start, clocking speeds in the high 140s and collecting a fair amount of early bounce. He dismissed Rahmanullah Gurbaz for 11 in the third over caught behind, straight off a rising delivery to Jos Buttler.
Two overs later, Sediqullah Atal fell for 4, defeated by an inswinger that crashed into his stumps. Rahmat Shah looked even more powerless-Archer trapped him lbw for a golden duck with a pinpoint yorker, leaving Afghanistan staring sternly at 37 for 3 in the ninth over. David Willey complemented Archer’s ire with a painstaking opening stint, finishing with 1 for 39, as Adil Rashid waited in the wings to capitalize during the middle overs.
Amidst all this carnage stood Ibrahim Zadran. The 23-year-old opener was cool-headed, rebuffed by pressure while picking his moments to counterattack. He managed to pass through a probing spell from Archer, who ended with 3 for 64, and started to find his footing against Willey and Overton. Meanwhile, on the other end, Shahidi joined him, and together they put up a dogged recovery. Their partnership for the fourth wicket of 103 runs was a masterclass in rebuilding: Shahidi rotated the strike during nudges and deflections, scoring 40 off 67 balls, while Zadran went for broke against the bowlers, crisply creaming through cover and launching the spinners over midwicket.
In the 22nd over, England turned to Liam Livingstone’s legspin, and he struck, inducing a false shot from Shahidi, who looped the ball to Root at short cover, thus breaking the partnership at 140 for 4. Azmatullah Omarzai arrived with purpose, shifting into a higher gear alongside Zadran. For 41 runs off 31 balls, he provided a fireworks display-three fours and a spectacular six which was literally out of the ground off Rashid. Their partnership of 72 ended when Omarzai was hit on the crease and bowled by Overton with a neatly disguised slower ball, but Mohammad Nabi kept the momentum going.
Nabi’s entry threw the remaining few minutes into a flurry. The experienced all-rounder played his 164th ODI and brought experience and sheer power, hammering 40 off 24 balls with a mixture of slog sweeps and lofted drives. However, Zadran got better by each ball, reaching the century off 112 balls with a pungent cut behind point. He then really went to town on the England spinners-Rashid and Livingstone-that were carted for 68 and 61 runs respectively in their combined 17 overs.
The huge sixth-wicket partnership, totaling 111 runs with Nabi, tilted the tide in Afghanistan’s favor and over the 300-mark. Zadran’s 177 off 146 was a magnificent innings with 17 fours and 5 sixes; he was finally dismissed in the 49th over when Archer claimed his wicket at long-off. Rashid chipped in with a quick 11 off 6 and Afghanistan finished at 325 for 7-a score which appeared imposing in light of their bowling skills and England’s recent inhibitions with the bat.
It started at 6:30 PM in the lights and with dew already on the field. Though it did not help Afghanistan bowlers, it was mentally annoying for them. Phil Salt and Ben Duckett were positive at the beginning, but Omarzai found Salt’s stumps with a delivery that nipped back, caught him LBW for 12 in the fourth over. Jamie Smith at No. 3 faced only 11 balls before holing out to Nabi off a top-edged sweep: he departed for 11 with England at 30 for 2. Joe Root came out with a firm purpose; Duckett moved across and joined him to stem the tide.
Duckett looked fluent while attacking and had five boundaries, making 35 off 38 balls before Rashid Khan’s guile got him-he was bowled through the gate by a googly in the 13th over. It was 76 for 3. Harry Brook, now joining Root, added another 57 runs, fighting with some caution. But Brook was again struggling against spinners and eventually, giving a catch at slip to Rahmat Shah off Nabi’s offbreak, was dismissed for 25. England then were behind the required rate of 6.53 with 133 for 4 after 21.4 overs and with wickets in hand.
Batting third and captaining his side in the big World Cup game was Jos Buttler, England’s talisman. With Root solid at the crease, Buttler continued to play the secondary role, surviving an LBW appeal against Nabi in the 27th over, with the DRS finding that the ball was clipping the leg stump on the umpire’s call. Their stand of 96 runs was a lifeline for England-Root reached his 17th ODI century off 98 balls with a single on a flick through midwicket off Farooqi. Buttler finally began to settle in and had scored 38 off 42 before hitting a six off Naveen-ul-Haq.
Seeing the game slip away, Afghanistan’s bowlers tightened their lines. In the 34th over, Omarzai got his reward for persistently bowling on the same line, as Buttler edged a length ball through to Gurbaz, earning a full-throated cheer from the Afghan fans. Liam Livingstone scored 12 with a catch off Naib to give way for a beleaguered England at 229 for 6 with 97 runs still to get in 64 balls. Root-the last man standing-had Stan Overton supporting him with an aggressive 32 off 22, and this confession included a massive six off Rashid that badly rekindled hope for England as they took the game in good stead.
With 39 to score off 25 deliveries, the equation was definitely tight but doable. Root’s 120 finished in 118 balls looked like a rare jewel-cuts, drives and deft glances kept England alive and kicking. Overton’s cameo finally came to an end in the 48th over when he was holed out to long-on off Omarzai by Nabi, who also then bowled Root with a stick of lightning.
Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid continued the chase-13 from 9 for Archer, which included a boundary off Farooqi, but after far too high a ball to Nahid with 13 to get off the last over. Omarzai held his nerve and bowled the last over. Rashid scrambled 4 off the first four balls, leaving the chase down to 9 from 2. His lofted shot off the fifth went straight into the hands of zadran at long-on, sealing an 8-run win for Afghanistan as they defend 325 with England all out for 317.
Omarzai was widely praised for taking 5 for 58, accounting for the dismissals of Salt, Buttler, Root, Overton, and Rashid. Yet, Zadran’s 177 and the match-defining catch in the end made the loudest noise and got him the Player of the Match award. Players embraced, the fans danced, and Shahidi hailed the team’s belief as pure delight filled the hearts of Afghanistan.
The English camp, however, had their hearts broken-their ninth defeat in ten white-ball games for 2025 saw them not only crashed out of the Champions Trophy but drop to seventh in the ODI ranking. A disconsolate Butler pitched his team’s comments, reflective of one in crisis: their white-ball reboot in tatters. Afghanistan marched boldly on, its cocktail of youth and experience proving that they belong among the mighty, leaving Lahore with a memory of a beginning classic.
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