Champions Trophy 2025: Australia qualify for knockouts after washout in Afghanistan clash

After persistent rain and a wet outfield, the clash between Afghanistan and India in the ongoing Champions Trophy 2025 has been abandoned. Australia had a target of 274 runs to chase down, and opener Travis Head propelled his side to an exceptional start in the run chase. 

However, as rain interrupted play midway into the second innings, the game was eventually abandoned. With one win and two no results, Australia currently occupies the top spot in their group and have qualified for the semi-final of the tournament.

Speaking of the game between Afghanistan and Australia, the clash began with Afghanistan coming in to bat first. The side got off to a subpar start as openers Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmanullah Gurbaz departed quite early into their innings. 

However, Sediqullah Atal and Azmatullah Omarzai put in a good showing, scoring 85 and 67 runs,



respectively. Their knocks helped Afghanistan post a total of 273 runs in the first innings of the game. 

As for Australia, Ben Dwarshuis was the highest wicket taker in the first innings with three wickets to his name. Adam Zampa and and Spencer Johnson took two wickets each, with Glenn Maxwell and Nathan Ellis striking once each as well. 

Aiming to chase down a target of 274 runs, Australia opened their innings with Travis Head and Matt Short coming out to bat. Where Afghanistan managed to send Short packing quite early, the knocks of Steve Smith and Travis Head put them in trouble. 

Smith amassed 19* runs in 22 deliveries, while Head scored 59* runs in 40 deliveries. Both batters looked to propel Australia towards a comfortable win when rain stopped play. The persistent rain and the wet outfield saw the game being abandoned with both sides sharing a point.