AFG vs SA Match Prediction: Who will win the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 Match 3?
AFG vs SA Match Details:
The third match of the Champions Trophy 2025 will be played between Afghanistan and South Africa as the teams will meet in a Group B clash on February 21 at the National Stadium in Karachi.
Both these teams will be in action for the first time in the tournament and will be looking to kick off their campaign on a positive note.
| Match Info. | |
|---|---|
| Series | Champions Trophy 2025 |
| Match | Afghanistan vs South Africa |
| Venue | National Stadium, Karachi |
| Date & Time | Feb 21, 2025, at 2:30 PM IST (2 PM Local Time) |
| Live Streaming | JioHotstar (App & Website) |
| Live Broadcast | Star Sports & Sports18 Network |
AFG vs SA Head-to-Head Record:
The head-to-head record suggests that the encounter should be closely fought as both these teams have played 5 ODIs against each other and South Africa are leading that with a scoreline of 3-2. While South Africa won their first two encounters against Afghans in 2019 and 2023, with both of them coming in the 50-over World Cups, Afghanistan defeated the Proteas in a 3-match bilateral series held in September 2024 by a 2-1 margin.
| Number of Matches Played | 5 |
| Won by Afghanistan | 2 |
| Won by South Africa | 3 |
| Most recent fixture | September 22, 2024 (won by South Africa) |
| First ever fixture | June 15, 2019 (won by South Africa) |
| Last 5 matches | Afghanistan 2 – 3 South Africa |
AFG vs SA Pitch Report & Weather Conditions:
High-scoring venue
The pitch at the National Stadium is generally a high-scoring one which favors the batters where the batters enjoy the ball coming onto the bat nicely. The spinners might get a bit of turn from the surface and for the pacers there would be some assistance early on with the new ball especially under lights. Apart from that, expect the ball to dominate the bat.
Recent trends here have shown scores in excess of 300 frequently being posted by the team batting first. In the first match of the Champions Trophy, New Zealand posted 320 against the hosts Pakistan while South Africa went past 350 just a few days ago while batting first against the hosts in the Tri-Series conducted.
Also Read: BAN vs IND Match Prediction: Who will win the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 Match 2?
Dew Factor
Dew is expected to play a major role in the match with the second innings under lights being much easier to bat on. Dew starts forming as the sun sets in Karachi and bowling can prove to be a tough task with the wet ball.
Average 1st Innings Score
The average first innings score in the 79 ODI matches played so far at the National Stadium in Karachi is 240. However, that figure swells up to 305 in the last three ODIs played at this venue with the most recent one being the first match of the tournament.
| Average 1st Innings score (overall) | 240 |
| Average 1st Innings score (in the last 3 ODIs) | 305 |
Chasing Record
Karachi has proven to be a good place for chasing over the years. Out of the 79 ODIs at this venue, 39 have been won by the team batting second while 36 have been won by the team batting first.
| Total number of matches | 79 |
| Matches won by teams batting first | 37 |
| Matches won by chasing teams | 39 |
Weather Report
The skies will be a bit cloudy with the sun breaking through them and we can expect the temperatures to be around the 30°C mark the players and the spectators will enjoy the conditions with the mercury dropping around 25°C in the late evening.
| Temperature | 30°C |
| Weather Forecast | Partly cloudy |
| Pitch Behavior | Flat and hard |
| Best Suited To | Batters |
| Average 1st innings score | 239 |
AFG vs SA Prediction: Probable Playing 11 (Predicted):
Afghanistan Probable Playing 11
Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Nangeyalia Kharote/Naveed Zadran, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi
South Africa Probable Playing 11
Temba Bavuma (C), Tony de Zorzi/Ryan Rickelton, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller/Tristan Stubbs, Wiaan Mulder, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, Tabraiz Shamsi
AFG vs SA Form and Fitness:
Afghanistan National Cricket Team Recent Form (most recent first): W W NR W L
South Africa National Cricket Team Recent Form (most recent first): L L L L L
| Team | Matches Won (out of last 5) | Matches Lost (out of last 5) |
| Afghanistan | 3 | 1 |
| South Africa | 0 | 5 |
Afghanistan: The last time Afghanistan played in the ODI format was a couple of months back when they were involved in a 3-match series against Zimbabwe which they won 2-0 with the first of them being washed out due to rain. A month prior to that, they won 2-1 against Bangladesh in UAE and are a team that is brimming with confidence at the moment specially having beaten South Africa a few months back and quite convincingly too.
They have lost their spinner Allah Ghazanfar to an injury and he could prove to be a big loss as he was the player of the series in the ODI series against Bangladesh and was in brilliant form. Having said that, their spin roster is full of world-class performers.
South Africa: Their preparation for the marquee event did not turn out how they would have liked it to as South Africa lost both the matches in the recently concluded Tri-Series on Pakistani soil. However, they were not even near full strength and their key players will be back now. Their recent ODI form has been really poor though as they were clean-swept 3-0 back home by Pakistan too.
They have been plagued by injuries with Nortje already being replaced by Corbin Bosch in the tournament. Clouds linger over Ngidi and Miller who too are coming in on the back of an injury and will be interesting to see whether they play a part in their first match.
AFG vs SA Toss Prediction: Afghanistan to win and bowl first
Even though the tournament opener saw New Zealand defend a total comfortably, recent trends have shown chasing to be the easier out of the two. The dew plays a part largely and expect the skipper that wins the toss to have a bowl first.
SA vs AFG Score Prediction:
Scenario 1: South Africa batting first
If South Africa bats first, our prediction will be a score of around the 300-run mark.
Scenario 1: Afghanistan batting first
If Afghanistan gets a first go with the bat, they will score around 270-280 runs as per our prediction.
AFG vs SA Players to perform prediction:
Afghanistan
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz – The Afghanistan opener is the most prolific run-scorer in the history of the ODIs between these two nations. He has scored 219 runs against South Africa which includes a century as well as a half-century. He was the player of the series in the 3-match ODI series when these two teams last met and is also coming off a hundred in the practice match against Pakistan Shaheens.
- Azmatullah Omarzai – One opponent that the Afghanistani all-rounder loves playing against is South Africa. He has got out just once in the four innings played against South Africa and has 210 runs with a highest score of 97*. He has also been very impressive with the ball in the recent past.
- Rashid Khan – Whenever Afghanistan have done well at big events, one name has always put in a big performance and that is their global superstar Rashid Khan. Rashid has 9 wickets in 4 games against South Africa including a 5-er.
South Africa
- Temba Bavuma – The South African captain would want to lead from the front in the first match of the tournament. He is one of the few batters who was part of the tri-series preceding the tournament and has had a feel of the conditions in Karachi having already played there and scored an 82.
- Heinrich Klassen – One of the most powerful hitters in the middle order going all around the world, Klassen is particularly destructive against spin, and conditions in Karachi could suit him against a spin-heavy Afghanistan attack. He scored a 56-ball 87 in Karachi against Pakistan in the tri-series and is in form.
- Keshav Maharaj – The left-arm spin of Maharaj is highly underrated and he could be a handful in conditions like Karachi against an opposition that fancies spin.
AFG vs SA Best Batsman Prediction
Who will score the most runs for Afghanistan in the match: Rahmanullah Gurbaz & Azmatullah Omarzai
Who will score the most runs for South Africa in the match: Rassie van der Dussen & Heinrich Klassen
AFG vs SA Best Bowler Prediction
Who will pick the most wickets for Afghanistan in the match: Rashid Khan & Mohammad Nabi
Who will pick the most wickets for South Africa in the match: Kagiso Rabada & Keshav Maharaj
Disclaimer: The prediction is based on the author’s understanding, analysis, and instinct. While making your prediction, consider the points mentioned, and make your own decision