Ryan Rickelton’s Century Guides South Africa to Victory Over Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy

Opener Ryan Rickelton celebrated his debut one-day international century, leading South Africa to a commanding 107-run win over Afghanistan, who were making their first appearance at the Champions Trophy, on Friday.

Rickelton scored 103 from 106 balls, contributing to a solid total of 6-315, with four out of the top five batsmen making significant scores of at least 50 runs.

The pitch, riddled with cracks, worked in favour of South Africa’s four-pronged pace attack, as Afghanistan crumbled for 208 all out in just 43.3 overs.

This win marked the end of South Africa’s six-match losing streak in ODIs.

“It was a clinical performance,” said South African captain Temba Bavuma. “We were fortunate with the toss, but it was a daring choice to bat first, especially unsure of the pitch conditions, yet we managed it well.”

Before the Group B match, South Africa faced a setback as Heinrich Klaasen was sidelined due to an elbow injury. However, Rassie van der Dussen made an impressive impact as his replacement, scoring a brisk 52 off 46 balls.

The South African bowlers capitalised on Afghanistan’s vulnerability against short deliveries in their top order.

Kagiso Rabada consistently found the right lengths, taking out Ibrahim Zadran’s middle stump with a ball clocked at 148 km/h.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz, captain Hashmatullah Shahidi, and Mohammad Nabi all fell victim to pull shots, while Rabada also troubled Azmatullah Omarzai with another short ball that led to a catch behind for 18 runs.

As a result, Afghanistan slumped to 5-89 in the 23rd over.

“Our batting performance wasn’t up to standard today,” acknowledged Shahidi. “We possess the ability to fight back but didn’t execute our game plan effectively. With two games remaining, we’ll forget this match and focus on the next.”

Rahmat Shah was the standout performer for Afghanistan, scoring 90 off 92 balls, while Rashid Khan briefly delighted Afghan fans at the National Bank Stadium with three fours and a six in his 18 runs.

“He played excellently during difficult periods, and we’ll take that as a positive,” added Shahidi.

Rabada finished with impressive figures of 3-36, including the final wicket of Shah, while Lungi Ngidi (2-56), Wiaan Mulder (2-36), and Marco Jansen (1-32) bowled with precision.

In the upcoming fixture, two-time champions Australia will face England in Lahore on Saturday.