Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz endured another disappointing outing in the Champions Trophy 2025, falling for a five-ball duck in the crucial Group B match against Australia at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. Gurbaz was cleaned up by Spencer Johnson, who bowled a lethal 140.7 km/h yorker that swung in late, leaving the Afghan opener stunned. The early breakthrough put Afghanistan at 3/1 within the first over after winning the toss and opting to bat.
Playing XIs:
Afghanistan:
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Australia:
Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson
With Afghanistan needing a win to keep their semi-final hopes alive and Australia under pressure after their previous game was washed out, the early dismissal of Gurbaz has put the Afghans on the back foot in this high-stakes contest.