South Africa vs England Highlights, ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Clinical South Africa thrash England by 7 wickets to enter semis

Jofra Archer to Ryan Rickelton, Hard length and on off, Ryan Rickelton stabs it towards short covers.

Jofra Archer to Ryan Rickelton, More extras! Short of a length and on middle, goes with the angle to the leg side. Ryan Rickelton tries to glance it away but misses. Third wide of the over!

Jofra Archer to Ryan Rickelton, A shout for LBW, but turned down! Good length and on middle, angling in sharply. Ryan Rickelton looks to clip it away but misses and gets hit on the pads.

Jofra Archer to Ryan Rickelton, Back of a length but going down the leg again, Ryan Rickelton fails to work it away. Jamie Smith dives to his left to grab it behind the stumps. Another wide!

Jofra Archer to Ryan Rickelton, South Africa are underway with extras! Jofra Archer starts with a full delivery but angling down the leg side. Ryan Rickelton misses his flick. Wided.

We are back for the chase! The players are already out in the middle now. Ryan Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs are the two openers for South Africa. Jofra Archer to start proceedings with the ball. Here we go...

... THE RUN CHASE ...

South Africa are clearly ahead in this game, and with the pitch looking good for batting, they will back themselves to chase this down. England needed to defeat South Africa by 207 or more runs to knock them out, thus the Proteas have already qualified for the semis irrespective of the result in this game. England, meanwhile, are playing for pride and will have to give everything they have to defend this low total. But for that, they will need an exceptional bowling effort. Don’t go anywhere as the action for the second inning isn’t far away!

Keshav Maharaj is up for a quick chat. He says that they were brilliant with executing their plans. Adds that they were a bit sloppy in the field but brought it back nicely with a few brilliant catches. Mentions that the pacers set the tone well early on which made his job a bit easier. Says that Marco Jansen took a great catch and he was happy with Harry Brook's wicket as he can be a dangerous batter once he gets set. Ends by saying that he is confident they will be chasing this total down comfortably.

All the bowlers of South Africa who bowled picked up wickets. Wiaan Mulder also made a good contribution with his three key wickets. This South African team looks well-balanced and is proving to be a strong contender for the trophy. However, their skipper Aiden Markram suffered a hamstring injury and didn’t take the field for the entire inning.  The team will be hoping he recovers in time to bat if needed and gets fully fit for the semi-finals, which are just a few days away.

On the other hand, South Africa were outstanding in both bowling and especially in fielding as they are known for worldwide. They took some stunning catches and bowled with discipline, forcing the English batters into mistakes. Marco Jansen was brilliant in the Powerplay, picking up three crucial wickets and immediately putting England under pressure. He was involved in five dismissals, taking two brilliant catches as well, making his contribution in this match extremely valuable. Spinner Keshav Maharaj controlled the middle overs brilliantly. He gave the ball flight, tempting the batters to go after him, and picked up two key wickets in the process. 

England’s middle order have been a concern throughout this tournament, and today was no different. Their batters clearly lack the skill and temperament needed for ODI cricket. None of them showed consistency or the right approach for the 50-over format as England again fell short of batting out the whole 50 overs. Jos Buttler, playing his last match as England’s white-ball captain, showed some fight but he also got out after scoring 21 runs in 43 balls. Six batters of England got their scores in double digits but none tried to make it a big one. 

England have bundled out for 179 in their final game of the Champions Trophy 2025. Their batting struggles continued, with no batter showing the intent to play a sensible and long innings. Instead, they went for aggressive shots and kept losing wickets one after another. Phil Salt and Jamie Smith, both got out in the Powerplay once again. Their in-form batters, Ben Duckett and Joe Root, managed to hit a couple of boundaries but could not really stick around for long.

Wiaan Mulder to Adil Rashid, OUT! CAUGHT BEHIND! England are bundled out for the lowest total in this edition of the Champions Trophy! 179 runs, that is! With more than 11 overs to spare. South Africa with this exceptional bowling display, make their way to the semis! Wiaan Mulder keeps it just outside off, on a  length and gets the ball to shape away just a bit. Adil Rashid has a poke at it away from his body and gets an outside edge straight to Heinrich Klaasen behind the stumps. Mulder ends with 3 wickets. 

Wiaan Mulder to Adil Rashid, Good length, on off, Adil Rashid blocks. 

Lungi Ngidi to Saqib Mahmood, Full and on leg, Saqib Mahmood clips it to deep fine leg and taes two runs. 

Lungi Ngidi to Saqib Mahmood, Hurls it nicely on a length, just outside off, Saqib Mahmood swipes across but plays all over it. 

Lungi Ngidi to Adil Rashid, Short and on off, Adil Rashid swivels to pull and keeps it along the ground to deep square leg for one. 

Lungi Ngidi to Adil Rashid, Hits the deck hard, on a length, on the stumps, Adil Rashid brings the bat ahead and stabs it. 

Lungi Ngidi to Adil Rashid, Full, at the stumps, Adil Rashid firms the drive straight back to the bowler. 

Lungi Ngidi to Saqib Mahmood, Fuller than a length, just outside off, Saqib Mahmood drops his bat on it with soft hands and guides it to deep third for one. 

Wiaan Mulder to Adil Rashid, Hard length, on off, Adil Rashid nearly chips it to the man at cover.

Wiaan Mulder to Adil Rashid, Short of a length, around off, Adil Rashid keeps it out.

Wiaan Mulder to Saqib Mahmood, Length, on off, Saqib Mahmood steers it to deep third for a single.

Wiaan Mulder to Saqib Mahmood, On a length, just outside off, Saqib Mahmood swings through the line but misses. 

Wiaan Mulder to Saqib Mahmood, And again, takes some pace off and keeps it outside off, on a length, Saqib Mahmood is beaten on the outside edge.

Wiaan Mulder to Saqib Mahmood, Back of a length, outside off, Saqib Mahmood looks to cut but misses.

Lungi Ngidi to Saqib Mahmood, Full and outside off, Saqib Mahmood eases it to deep cover for a single.

Lungi Ngidi to Saqib Mahmood, On a good length, on off, Saqib Mahmood pushes it to mid on.

Lungi Ngidi to Saqib Mahmood, Hard length, on off, Saqib Mahmood blocks it to cover.

Saqib Mahmood is the last man in for England.

Lungi Ngidi to Jos Buttler, OUT! CAUGHT! One brings two, and England are on the brink of being skittled out! Lungi Ngidi gets himself on the wickets column and this wicket also marks his 100 wickets in ODI cricket! Takes pace off and keeps it fuller and on off, Jos Buttler is way too early on the drive and ends up checking his shot to mid off. Keshav Maharaj takes a safe catch. England are now 173/9!

Lungi Ngidi to Adil Rashid, Full and on middle, Adil Rashid flicks it to deep square leg for a single.

Lungi Ngidi to Jos Buttler, Short of a length, on off, Jos Buttler swipes but gets an inside edge to backward square leg for a single.

Wiaan Mulder to Adil Rashid, On a length, outside off, Adil Rashid pushes it to mid off.

Wiaan Mulder to Jofra Archer, OUT! CAUGHT! Talk about smart catching, and Marco Jansen will top the chart by the end of the day! Short of a length, on middle, Jofra Archer stands tall and swipes across the line. He doesn't quite time it well and hits it low to the left of mid-wicket. Marco Jansen flings low and takes a fantastic catch to break the 45 run stand. Jofra Archer departs for 25 (31) and England are now 171/8. Adil Rashid walks in next for them.

Wiaan Mulder to Jofra Archer, WIDE! A bit too short and over middle and duck. Jofra Archer lets it pass.

Wiaan Mulder to Jofra Archer, Short of a length, over off, Jos Buttler punches it to cover for one.

Wiaan Mulder to Jos Buttler, Short ball, on the left shoulder. Jos Buttler is very late to pull and tries to get his head out of the way. Gets some bat on the ball that dribbles past the keeper to his left for one. 

Wiaan Mulder to Jofra Archer, Angling into the pads, on a length, Jofra Archer clips it to fine leg for a single.

Wiaan Mulder to Jos Buttler, Comes back into the attack and lands it on a good length, on off, Jos Buttler pushes it to the left of mid off for one.

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, FOUR! Another short one, over middle, Jofra Archer pulls and gets a top edge over the keeper's head for a boundary. This partnership has now moved onto 38 runs.

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, Back of a length, over off, Jofra Archer half ducks under it and still looks to pull. The ball drops down the deck off his pads coming off the splice of the bat.

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, WIDE! Digs it into the surface but slants it down leg again. 

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, Good length, on off, Jofra Archer chips it to point.

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, Fuller than a length, outside off, Jofra Archer moves across and tries to work it through the on side but gets an inside edge to short fine leg.

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, WIDE! Full, angling in, down leg, Jofra Archer flicks but misses. 

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, Full, outside off, Jofra Archer miscues his drive to mid on.

Marco Jansen to Jofra Archer, Back of a length, on the hips, Jofra Archer pulls it to the right of deep fine leg for a brace. 

Keshav Maharaj to Jos Buttler, Maharaj finishes his spell with a maiden! This is full, around off, Jos Buttler eases it out to point.