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ICC Champions Trophy 2025: South Africa beat Afghanistan by 107 runs
Rickelton Shines with Maiden ODI Century as SA's Middle-Order Powerhouses Dominate Afghanistan
Ryan Rickelton scored his maiden one-day international century as South Africa claimed a comfortable 107-run win over Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy.
Ryan Rickelton has been in great form recently. He came into the Champions Trophy after a strong performance in the SA20, where he was the fourth-highest scorer. Before that, he had an impressive 259 in the New Year's Test against Pakistan. On Friday, he made his mark on the 50-over format, scoring his first ODI century in his seventh game as South Africa won their Champions Trophy opener against Afghanistan by 107 runs.
South Africa batted first on a grassy pitch in Karachi. Rickelton scored 103, supported by fifties from Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, and Aiden Markram, helping South Africa reach 315 for 6. Afghanistan needed to chase their highest-ever total to win, but they fell short. Rahmat Shah was the standout for Afghanistan with a lively 90 off 92 balls, but with the second-highest score being only 18, they couldn't compete. Kagiso Rabada took three wickets, while Lungi Ngidi and Wiaan Mulder took two each, as Afghanistan were all out for 208 in 43.3 overs.
Rickelton's innings was almost flawless. He stayed calm even when Tony de Zorzi fell early and when Bavuma took his time to get going. Rickelton hit boundaries whenever he could and rotated the strike when he couldn't. He started with a lovely shot past mid-off and then hit two consecutive boundaries against Fazalhaq Farooqi in the fifth over.
De Zorzi also hit two fours but was out early to Mohammad Nabi. Bavuma took 19 balls to score seven runs before getting a couple of boundaries. Rickelton picked Azmatullah Omarzai for two beautiful fours, reaching his fifty in just 48 balls.
South Africa were 83 for 1 after 15 overs, and then it was time for their batsmen to face Afghanistan's spinners. Rickelton, who had faced Rashid Khan in the SA20 nets, showed his skills here. Bavuma continued his good form, getting his second fifty away from home and sharing a 129-run partnership with Rickelton. Bavuma was eventually out for a deep midwicket shot off Nabi.
Rickelton moved into the 90s without any trouble, and Afghanistan's fielding errors didn't help them. Rickelton soon became the first South African to score a century on Champions Trophy debut. He was run-out in a bizarre way when he pushed a length ball back to Rashid, who threw it to the wicketkeeper. Rickelton, slightly out of his crease, dived but his bat bounced just short of the line.
Even after Rickelton was out, van der Dussen and Markram scored fifties, adding 51 runs in the last five overs to give South Africa a strong total.
Afghanistan needed a good start, but South Africa's bowlers were relentless. Ngidi's short ball got rid of Gurbaz, and Ibrahim Zadran was bowled by a 148.3kph delivery from Rabada. Sediqullah Atal struggled and was eventually run-out. Hashmatullah Shahidi fell to a great catch by Bavuma, and Afghanistan were 51 for 4 after 15 overs.
Rahmat fought back, scoring fifty off 62 balls, but with no support, Afghanistan struggled. The Karachi crowd found some joy when Rashid hit three fours and a six, but there wasn't much else to cheer for. Rahmat was the last man out, edging Rabada to Rickelton for 90, as South Africa registered their first ODI win after six attempts.
Brief Score: South Africa 315/6 (Rickelton 103, Bavuma 58, Markram 52*, van der Dussen 52, Nabi 2-51) beat Afghanistan 208/10 (Rahmat 90, Rabada 3-36, Mulder 2-36, Ngidi 2-56) by 107 runs
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