ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Afghanistan vs South Africa, AFG vs SA, Match 3- Squads, Probable Playing 11, AFG vs SA Fantasy Picks, Live Streaming & Telecast, Match Timings in India (IST), Match Prediction, Tickets, Pitch Report & Weather

Afghanistan will open their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 campaign against South Africa on February 21 (Friday) at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi, Pakistan. The two teams last played an ODI series in the UAE in 2024, where Afghanistan beat South Africa 2-1. 

In the run-up to the Champions Trophy, South Africa were white-washed at home by Pakistan and then in Pakistan too, they lost both their matches against the hosts and New Zealand in a tri-series. As for Afghanistan, they beat Zimbabwe 2-1 in an ODI series. 

Also Read: "Not Here Just To Participate..."- Afghan Captain Shahidi Reveals Team's Goal For CT 2025

Squads

Afghanistan Squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025

Hashmatullah Shahidi, Rahmat Shah, Azmatullah Omarzai, Fareed Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Gulbadin Naib, Ibrahim Zadran, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Nangeyalia Kharote, Naveed Zadran, Noor Ahmad, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rashid Khan, Sediqullah Ataly

South Africa Squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025

Temba Bavuma, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen

Probable 11 for AFG vs SA

Afghanistan’s probable 11

Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Noor Ahmad

South Africa’s probable 11

Ryan Rickelton (wk), Temba Bavuma (C), Tony de Zorzi, Aiden Markram,  Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Corbin Bosch

Where to watch Afghanistan vs South Africa - ICC Champions Trophy 2025

In India - Afghanistan vs South Africa will be telecasted live on Star Sports Network, and it will also be streamed live on JioHotstar.

In South Africa - Afghanistan vs South Africa will be telecasted live on SS Cricket. It will also be streamed live on SuperSport DSTV

In Afghanistan - Afghanistan vs South Africa will be telecasted live on ATN TV, and it will also be streamed live on icc.tv.

What will Afghanistan vs South Africa match timings be?

The Afghanistan vs South Africa game will start at 2:30 PM (IST) in India.

In South Africa, the game will commence at 11:00 AM, while it will start at 1:30 PM in Afghanistan and at 2 PM in Karachi. 

Where to buy tickets for Afghanistan vs South Africa?

You can buy the tickets for the Afghanistan vs South Africa match in Karachi here: https://pcb.tcs.com.pk/ICCTICKETS

Afghanistan vs South Africa fantasy picks

Safe options: Rashid Khan (AFG), Mohammad Nabi (AFG), Heinrich Klaasen (SA), Wiaan Mulder (SA)

Risky options: Kagiso Rabada (SA), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (AFG), Fazalhaq Farooqi (AFG), Ryan Rickelton (SA)

Afghanistan vs South Africa Head To Head 

Afghanistan and South Africa have played 5 matches together. Out of that, three matches have been won by South Africa and 2 by Afghanistan. 

AFG vs SA CT 2025 Match Prediction

It is hard to call which team will be the favourites given the conditions and the recent form. While Afghanistan look like a solid unit and South Africa a struggling one, the fickle nature of the game suggests that you cannot choose one between the two. However, purely on current form, Afghanistan have the advantage. 

Pitch report for AFG vs SA

In Karachi, a total of 57 ODI matches have been hosted. Out of those, teams batting first have won 27, while those batting second have won on 28 occasions. Since 2021, teams batting second have won 5 times in 9 matches. The average score of teams batting first here has been 285/7, while the average second innings score is 234/7.

In the first match of the Champions Trophy, which was also played at this very ground, the pitch was two paced and therefore, even after the presence of dew in the second innings, Pakistan could not even get close to the target of 321 set by New Zealand. 

Karachi weather update for AFG vs SA

There will be no rain in Karachi on February 21 (Friday), and the temperature will decrease from 28 degrees Celsius at 2 pm local time, when the match will start, to 22 degrees Celsius at 10 pm local time, when the match will most likely end.