South Africa put up a thoroughly professional performance to sweep aside Afghanistan’s challenge in a Group B game of the Champions Trophy in Karachi on Friday.
Going into the match, the Afghans were considered to be tough challengers but the script did not turn out that way. South Africa ran away with the game, winning by a mammoth 107-run margin.
Afghanistan were pushed on the backfoot right from the start of the match after they lost the toss. The Proteas put up a strong batting display, muscled by a maiden hundred by opener Ryan Rickelton (103 off 106 balls) and three half-centuries by the middle-order batters, as they posted 315/6 in 50 overs.
The chase looked steep from the onset and it became even more difficult when the Afghans failed to get off to a good start. Afghanistan’s batting depends heavily on their openers, but neither Rahmanullah Gurbaz (10) nor Ibrahim Zadran (17) could stay at the crease for long.
Rahmat Shah, the No. 4 batter, put up his hand in crisis and waged a lonely battle.
But in the end, his 90 off 92 balls weren’t enough for Afghanistan to overcome the
tall target. Rahmat was the last man dismissed.
South Africa, who went into the match without big-hitter Heinrich Klaasen (elbow soft tissue injury) and Tristan Stubbs, saw their pace pack bowl in fine rhythm. Expectedly, Kagiso Rabida was the top performer with three wickets, while Lungi Ngidi and all-rounder Wiaan Mulder grabbed two wickets each. Left-arm seamer Marco Jansen and spinner Keshav Maharaj got a wicket each.
