Champions Trophy: Spirited Afghanistan keep semi-final hopes alive by ending England's campaign in group stage

Lahore [Pakistan], February 26 : An inspired performance from Ibrahim Zadran and Azmatullah Omarzai kept Afghanistan's hopes alive with an eight-run victory and ended England's Champions Trophy campaign in the Group B match at the picturesque Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday.
Afghanistan fans felt nostalgic as they saw their side successfully defend against England, just like they did during the ODI World Cup 2023 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
It was a nerve-wracking thriller as spectators witnessed ODI cricket at its best. The momentum swung like a pendulum as the game went right down the wire, leading to a nerve-wracking thriller.
In England's pursuit of a daunting 326-run target, Afghanistan's star all-rounder and ICC 2024 ODI Cricketer of the Year, Azmatullah Omarzai drew the first blood. He skidded one through the England opener, Philip Salt, to hand Afghanistan their opening breakthrough. The ball zipped past Salt's defence and crashed into the stumps, forcing the opener to return to the dressing room with a score of 12(13).
Seasoned all-rounder Mohammad Nabi got the better of young Jamie Smith on his first ball of the spell to reduce England to 30/2 in the seventh over.
Joe Root and Ben Duckett began the rebuild process by raising a 68-run stand for the third-wicket. Things appeared to be falling into place, but Rashid Khan pulled Afghanistan back into the game.
He broke the crucial stand by pinning Duckett (38) in front of the stumps. Nabi increased England's woes by forcing Harry Brook to cushion the ball back to him in the 22nd over.
England skipper Jos Buttler joined hands with Root in the middle to pull England out of a dire situation. The duo went from strength to strength and continued their push for a big chase in the do-or-die fixture.
Root got past his second successive half-century in the tournament. On the other hand, Buttler, who appeared to be scratchy initially, changed gears to keep the scoring rate in check.
Afghanistan looked down and out, but it was Afghanistan's star, Azmatullah, who kept their hopes alive. He ended the 83-run partnership by luring the English skipper to take the bait. Buttler fell to Azmatullah's short ball ploy and skewed it to Rahmat.
Afghanistan continued to roar back, with Gulbadin Naib sending Liam Livingstone (10) back to the pavilion. With his golden arm, he forced out an edge which carried straight to wicketkeeper Gurbaz behind the stumps.
Jamie Overton came in and reeled off a couple of boundaries to take the pressure off England's shoulders. But the game tilted in Afghanistan's favour after Joe Root found himself cramped for room and gloved it Gurbaz. With the seasoned star returned to the dressing room with 120(111), the onus fell on the tail end to see off the chase.
Jofra Archer took the mantle and flexed his power-hitting prowess with two boundaries. As the equation came close to run-a-ball, Azmatullah's slower delivery did the trick for Afghanistan.
Overton (32 from 28 deliveries) tried to clear the ball past the boundary rope but only found Nabi to add another twist to the tale.
Tension soared past the roof as the game continued to head towards its climax. Archer decided to take the aerial route in the penultimate over, but his shot only found Nabi's hands off Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Azmatullah ensured England failed to gather 13 runs in the final over. With a boundary need of the hour, Adil Rashid decided to go big but holed it to Ibrahim Zadran, bringing an end to England's campaign in the group stage. Azmatullah was the star performer for Afghanistan with his match-winning figures of 5/58 in 9.5 overs.
Earlier in the match, Afghanistan opener Ibrahim Zadran scripted history with a sensational knock of 177 off 146 deliveries, the highest individual score in ICC Champions Trophy history, surpassing England's Ben Duckett's 165. His record-breaking innings helped Afghanistan post a formidable 325/7 in 50 overs against England.
Zadran became not only the first Afghan player to score a century in the ICC Champions Trophy but also the first Afghan batter to score a century in any ICC event, marking a monumental moment for his nation in global cricket.
Winning the toss and opting to bat first, Afghanistan faced early setbacks, but a resilient middle-order fightback led by Zadran helped them post a commanding total.
England struck early, with Jofra Archer dismissing Rahmanullah Gurbaz (6) at 11/1. Things got worse when Sediqullah Atal (4) and Rahmat Shah (4) fell cheaply, leaving Afghanistan reeling at 37/3.
However, Zadran found an able partner in captain Hashmatullah Shahidi, who contributed 40 off 67 balls in a crucial 103-run stand. After Shahidi's dismissal to Adil Rashid, Afghanistan reached the 200-run mark in 37.2 overs.
Zadran continued his dominance, forging a 72-run partnership with Azmatullah Omarzai (41 off 31, 3 sixes, 1 four) before Jamie Overton broke the stand, but the real acceleration came when Mohammad Nabi joined Zadran at the crease.
The experienced all-rounder and the in-form opener stitched together a 111-run partnership, propelling Afghanistan beyond 300. Zadran surpassed his previous best score of 162 against Sri Lanka in 2022, rewriting history with a brilliant 177 (12 fours, 6 sixes). His innings finally ended on the first ball of the last over, falling to Liam Livingstone.
Despite the onslaught, Jofra Archer stood out with figures of 3/64, while Livingstone impressed with 2/28 in 5 overs. Overton and Rashid picked up a wicket each.