Champions Trophy 2025: AFG vs SA Award Winners, Player of the Match, Stats and Records, Captains' Words

South Africa started their Champions Trophy 2025 campaign with a comprehensive victory over Afghanistan on Friday (February 21).

In their first Group B match, the Proteas won by 107 runs at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi.

SA vs AFG - Scorecard and Match Recap

South Africa chose to bat first and scored 315 for 6 at the end of their full quota of 50 overs. Ryan Rickelton was the star of the show with a hundred, while Temba Bavuma (58), Rassie van der Dussen (52) and Aiden Markram (52*) also chipped in with half-centuries.

In the run chase, Afghanistan lost wickets at a canter at the start. The likes of Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Sediqullah Atal fell early as Afghans piled pressure on themselves. Rahmat Shah played a valiant knock of 90 runs and took them close, but it was too much as the Proteas registered a comfortable victory.

South Africa: 315/6 in 50 overs (Rickelton 103, Bavuma 58; Nabi 2/51)
Afghanistan: 208 all out in 43.3 overs (Rahmat 90, Rashid 18; Rabada 3/36)
Result: South Africa won by 107 runs

Afghanistan vs South Africa Award Winners

Player of the Match: Ryan Rickelton (South Africa)

The South African wicketkeeper-batter was awarded with the Player of the Match award for his magnificent 103 runs with the bat and he also picked up 2 catches behind the stumps.

Ryan Rickelton Comments: "Was nervous coming into today, first ICC event. Was a bit edgy but happy to contribute to the team in a winning performance. We thought the surface would be a bit tacky, but it played alright. The bounce was a bit inconsistent but we worked our way through it. I thought we played nicely with the batting we had in the tank to get a competitive total on the board. Disappointing to get out always, especially in that manner. Was looking to pull the trigger after that, but the guys who came in after did that and we managed to pick up a few extra boundaries. (On opening the batting) It is something I have done since I was a young kid, wasn't too difficult. Wasn't the best night with the gloves, but will learn from these mistakes."

Champions Trophy 2025: AFG vs SA Match Stats

Highest Individual Score of the Match: Ryan Rickelton (SA) - 103 runs

Best Bowling Figure of the Match: Kagiso Rabada (SA) - 3/36 in 8.3 overs

Most 4s Hit in the Match: Rahmat Shah (AFG) - 9 fours

Most 6s Hit in the Match: Rassie van der Dussen (SA) - 2 sixes

AFG vs SA, Champions Trophy 2025: What Captains Said

Temba Bavuma | SA Captain: Clinical performance. We took the brave decision to bat first not knowing about the wicket. We were then clinical with the ball too, closest to one of our best performance. The wicket looked a lot different to what we are used to in Pakistan. The batters fronted up and we managed to get a good score. There were a lot of cracks and we expected some variable bounce, it was a bit tricky at times. The guys at the back end pride themselves on having a strong finish. With the bowlers, it was about hitting that length hard. We need to do more of the same now against Australia.

Hashmatullah Shahidi | AFG Captain: I think we were not good enough while batting. The pitch was helping them in the second innings, but the way we batted in the first 20 overs wasn't up to the mark. I think the toss was key today, there were many cracks on this pitch. Their bowlers though bowled disciplined lengths. My expectation was to play well, we have achieved a lot and we have the ability to fight everywhere. We have some important games left, we will forget today and look to move forward. He played really well, it was an innings in tough times. Will take the positives with us and move forward, we still have a chance to play quality cricket.

** Comments Source: Cricbuzz