Australia enter Champions Trophy 2025 semifinals after washout vs Afghanistan

The Steve Smithled Australia has sealed the semifinal berth of the Champions Trophy 2025 Their clash against Afghanistan was called off following the rain interruptionThe Champions Trophy 2025 match between Australia and Afghanistan was halted due to rain The game stopped when the Aussies were at 109 runs for the loss of one wicket in 125 overs They were supposed to chase a target of 274 runsDespite the ground staffs efforts to clear the field several pools of water remained on the pitch and the umpires ultimately declared the match abandoned after an inspectionThe interruption came just an hour before the cutoff time for completing the matchWith the match being called off Australia have sealed the semifinals berth of the Champions Trophy 2025 with four points to their name Their last match against South Africa in Rawalpindi was also abandonedAt the time of interruption Travis Head was in superb form having scored 59 runs off 40 balls including nine fours and one sixHis knock came after a lucky reprieve when Rashid Khan dropped him on six diving at midon off Fazalhaq FarooqiAlso ReadWPL 2025 MI vs DC Mumbai Indians post a target of 124 runs against Delhi CapitalsHead capitalised on this opportunity and dominated the Afghanistan bowlers particularly taking 28 runs off Farooqis 17 ballsSkipper Steve Smith was at the other end playing a more measured knock with 19 not out from 22 balls including two boundariesAfghanistans chances of qualifying for the semifinals of the Champions Trophy 2025 have become thin They would now depend on the result of the match between South Africa and EnglandIf South Africa win they will top the group with five pointsIf England emerges victorious South Africa and Afghanistan will both finish on three points leading to a net runrate NRR calculationAfghanistans current NRR of 099 would almost certainly eliminate them unless South Africa loses by a margin of over 200 runsEarlier in the day Afghanistan posted a competitive total of 273 largely due to Sediqullah Atals gritty 85 and Azmatullah Omarzais explosive 67Atal anchored the innings after a shaky start but it was Omarzais late fireworks which propelled Afghanistan past 270 after they were 235 for 8 following Rashid Khans dismissalOmarzais 63ball knock under pressure had five sixes and one four He launched two massive sixes off Nathan Ellis in the penultimate over including a breathtaking 102m hit over midwicket sending the ball over Glenn Maxwell at the boundaryHe then struck a towering six wide of longoff as Afghanistan produced a late flourish for a total that would give their spinheavy bowling lineup a big boostBut he got out in the final over off Ben Dwarshuis who also dismissed Noor Ahmed in the final delivery of the day to finish with figures of 347 from nine oversWorld champions Australia also leaked 37 runs in extras that included 17 widesOpting to bat in the Champions Trophy 2025 against Australia Afghanistan suffered early blows as Spencer Johnson 249 cleaned up Rahmanullah Gurbaz for a fiveball duck and Ibrahim Zadran 22 off 28 gifted his wicket to Adam ZampaAtal then took charge initially struggling against Johnsons movement but settling in with crisp cover drives and flicksHe found a steady partner in Hashmatullah Shahidi and together they stitched a 68run stand navigating Australias spinners on a sluggish pitchAtal brought up his second ODI fifty in style launching Maxwell over midon for a sixHe later dismantled Zampa with two more sixes but fell 15 short of a maiden hundred chipping a Johnson delivery to Steve Smith at short cover in the 32nd overHis dismissal at 1594 triggered a collapse with skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi 20 off 49 falling soon after and Mohammad Nabi getting run out in a bizarre fashionFrom 1826 Afghanistan struggled to keep the momentum and at 2358 after Rashids departure they were staring at a modest totalAllrounder Omarzai fresh from a matchwinning 558 haul and 41run contribution against England then took chargeUnfazed by the situation the No 6 batter played with calm assurance reaching his eighth ODI fifty off 54 balls with a single off Dwarshuis in the 48th overIn doing so he became the joint thirdfastest Afghan player to reach the 1000run milestone achieving it in 31 innings behind Zadran 24 Gurbaz 27 and Shah 31With PTI Inputs