Australia will be taking on South Africa in the seventh game of the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The game is scheduled to be played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday (February 25).
The reigning world champions have started their campaign in the Champions Trophy on a brilliant note. The Steve Smith-led side thrashed bitter rivals England by five wickets in Lahore to get their campaign underway.
Australia had their back against the wall after England posted a big total of 351/8. With the bat, they were reeling at 136/4 at one stage before staging a brilliant fightback. Josh Inglis led the charge with the bat for the Australians by scoring an unbeaten century.
He scored 120 while Alex Carey scored 69 as Australia chased down the record total inside 48 overs. With Australia now eyeing another win, we are taking a look at the Australia Playing 11 for the upcoming game.
Australia Playing 11 vs South Africa- ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Match 7:
Openers: Matthew Short, Travis Head
Matthew Short and Travis Head are set to be the openers in the Australia Playing 11 for the second game as well. Short began his campaign on a fine note. While Australia’s top-order fell like a pack of cards, Short stood firm at his end and scored a fighting fifty. He departed after scoring 63 runs with the help of 9 fours and a six.
Unlike Short, Head failed to get going with the bat and will be desperate to make amends in the upcoming game. One of the best all-format players in the world at present, Head could score only 6 runs before being dismissed by Jofra Archer.
Middle-order batters and allrounders: Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell
Captain Steve Smith could not lead his side from the front. While Australia won the game, their captain had a disappointing outing with the bat. The right-handed batsman could score only 5 runs before being sent back by Mark Wood. Smith will be eyeing a big score against South Africa.
Marnus Labuschagne made useful contributions with both bat and ball. With the ball, he picked up 2 wickets before scoring 47 runs and is expected to retain his spot in the Australia Playing 11.
Josh Inglis and Alex Carey were the architects of Australia’s win. They shared a match-winning partnership of 146 runs for the fifth wicket. Carey departed for 69 runs while Inglis went on to score a fine century and remained unbeaten on 120.
Maxwell had a good game as well. The Australia allrounder picked up the crucial wicket of Jos Buttler. With the bat, he scored an unbeaten 32 off just 15 balls to help his team chase down the big total with ease.
Bowlers: Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson
The bowling lineup in the Australia Playing 11 is unlikely to be changed. Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, and Spencer Johnson are set to be the three pacers in the Australia Playing 11 while Adam Zampa will be leading the spin attack.
Dwarshuis had a fine outing against England as he picked up 3 wickets. He gave Australia a good start with the ball by taking two wickets inside six overs and will be eyeing a similar display in the upcoming game.
Johnson will be looking to do better after going wicketless for 54 runs in 7 overs. Ellis went wicketless too but bowled well, conceding only 51 runs in his 10 overs on a flat pitch. Zampa picked up 2 wickets for 64 runs in his 10 overs.
