Afghanistan vs Australia: Rain likely to play spoilsport in Lahore, checkout the Weather Report & Pitch Report
On Friday, February 28th, Two-time winners Australia will meet tournament debutants Afghanistan in the tenth match of the ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025. The famous Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore will host this high-intensity match between the two sides. This upcoming match is a must-win for both sides, as they hope to defeat each other and advance to the semi-finals.
In the last ICC Cricket match between the two sides in the 2024 T20 World Cup, the Afghans won by a margin of 21 runs over the Mighty Aussies, captained by All-Rounder Mitchell Marsh. The current ODI Cricket World Cup champions will attempt to avenge their humiliation against the extremely confident Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side on Friday and secure a semi-final spot. The Kangaroos began their campaign in the eight-team competition with a record-breaking five-wicket victory over Ashes rivals England in Lahore on February 22nd, but their second match against South Africa in Rawalpindi was rained out on Tuesday, February 25th.
The Spirited Afghanistan Cricket Team, on the other hand, will go into this crucial match having defeated England in an incredible match by eight runs in their second Group-B match on Wednesday, February 26 at the Gaddafi Stadium. The tournament newcomers will be hoping that Ibrahim Zadran and Azmatullah Omarzai maintain the incredible momentum from their strong performance versus the Jos Buttler-led side in the forthcoming important game against the Australians.
The 23-year-old Zadran played a record-breaking inning of 177 runs in the previous game, the highest by any player in the history of the competition while Omarzai registered a five-wicket-haul which helped their team secure an unforgettable win versus the Three Lions.
The Afghans are really confident ahead of this tough fixture and they won't wanna commit the mistake of taking the Australians lightly as we all know how Mighty the Australians are. Ahead of this highly intensive clash, let's take a look at the weather report and the pitch report of the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
Afghanistan versus Australia Champions Trophy 2025: Weather Forecast of Lahore
The weather forecast for Lahore is not looking ideal for a Cricket match. The city is anticipated to experience cloudy skies with light showers during the afternoon & early evening periods on the 28th of February
The probability of rain intervening with the match remains high in the early hours, which could lead to a delay in the toss and even a delayed start to the contest. The temperatures are expected to be chilly and shall hover around the 14-16 degrees Celsius region.
Afghanistan versus Australia Champions Trophy 2025: Pitch Report of the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore
The pitch of the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore has a tendency to provide a lot of support to the batters, especially in the first half of the match. The slow bowlers might get some help in the second inning but the seamers will have a huge say with the new ball, considering the overcast conditions during the match hours.
The average first inning score at this ground has been 293 runs, so the toss-winning captain should opt to bat first and post a gigantic total on the board, which will be really hard for the opposition to chase down.