While Group A of the ICC Champions Trophy has already confirmed its two semi-finalists in the form of India and New Zealand, things are heating up in Group B after the washed-out Australia vs South Africa match on Tuesday, which has kept the race to the semis wide open.
The winners of the match between the Proteas and the Aussies would have given Group B one of its two semi-finalists, but with the two teams splitting points in Rawalpindi, where rain didn’t even allow the toss to happen, hopes have renewed for England and Afghanistan who will face off on Wednesday at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
Both England and Afghanistan are without points after defeats in their opening games against Australia and South Africa, respectively, who have three points each.
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But as things stand currently in Group B, England and Afghanistan have a game more in hand and the result on Wednesday will keep the winning team close on the heels of the Australians and the Proteas. On the other side, curtains will come down on the campaign of the losing team.
That makes match number eight of this Champions Trophy a knockout fixture for the Afghans and the English team.
A couple of factors that could decide the winner on Wednesday could be the flat deck in Lahore and the late-evening dew.
With runs on offer on a placid track, the team winning the toss would want to chase. The other reason for batting second in Lahore is the dew factor that makes bowling under the lights a difficult task, as was seen in the match between Australia and England that saw the Aussies chase down a formidable target of 352 runs.
