Champions Trophy: rains wash away S Africa, Aussies clash

Rawalpindi: At the Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan, the Group B fixture between Australia and South Africa in Rawalpindi got abandoned without a toss after incessant rain on Tuesday. Weather conditions did not improve even three hours after the scheduled start, and the officials were forced to abandon the match.

Meanwhile, former India batter Mohammad Kaif lashed out at the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for not covering the entire ground as rain washed out the match. A picture shared by Kaif on social media showed that the outfield was not fully covered by the groundsmen.

Baffled with the scenes at the venue, Kaif slammed the hosts for their use of ICC funds for the eight-team marquee tournament and called it a "shame".

Taking to X, Kaif wrote, "It's a shame that the Rawalpindi ground isn't fully covered. Such an important match - SA vs Aus - might go down the drain because no one addressed this issue. Was the ICC money utilised wisely by hosts?"

For the unversed, the renovation of stadiums in Lahore, Karachi, and Rawalpindi was completed just days before the Champions Trophy despite multiple deadline extensions.

This marks Pakistan's first time hosting an ICC event in 29 years, having last co-hosted the 1996 World Cup. Meanwhile, India is playing its matches in Dubai.

The first-ever encounter between the two sides in the tournament saw an unwanted end as both sides shared a point each due to no result. With this, South Africa stays atop Group B with three points at an NRR of +2.140, while Australia is second with +0.475.

South Africa and Australia started their campaign on a winning note against Afghanistan and England, respectively. A win in the clash would have bolstered their semis hopes in Group B.

The last time these two sides met in an ODI at an ICC event, they played out an absolute nail-biter where the Australians overcame South Africa by a close margin in the semi-final of the 2023 World Cup