Latest news with #MatthewShort
Express Tribune
03-03-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Australia suffer major blow ahead of CT 2025 semi-final
Listen to article Australia's aggressive right-handed opener, Matthew Short, has been ruled out of the ongoing Champions Trophy 2025 ahead of their highly anticipated semi-final clash against unbeaten India. Short, injured during the Kangaroos' match against Afghanistan on February 8, will be replaced by Cooper Connolly in the 15-man squad. The ICC's Event Technical Committee has approved Connolly's inclusion, with the left-handed batter featuring in three ODIs for Australia. Despite Connolly's addition, Cricket Australia indicated that Jake Fraser-McGurk is the most likely option to open, given his aggressive batting style and ability to exploit early conditions. The injury setback comes as Australia prepare to take on unbeaten India in the first semi-final at Dubai International Stadium on March 4. The Kangaroos were the first team from Group B to qualify for the knockout stage after their rain-affected match against Afghanistan in Lahore. India, led by Rohit Sharma, topped Group A with three wins, including victories over Pakistan and New Zealand. The venue for the final on March 9 will be determined by the result of the semi-final — Dubai if India advance, or Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium if Australia triumph. South Africa and New Zealand will contest the second semi-final on March 5 in Lahore. India topped Group A with three wins, including victories over hosts Pakistan and New Zealand. The winner of the first semi-final will determine the venue of the final — Dubai if India advance, or Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium if Australia triumph. South Africa and New Zealand will contest the second semi-final on March 5 in Lahore.
Express Tribune
02-03-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Australia face Short blow ahead of semis
Australia is likely to make changes to its top order for the Champions Trophy semi-final after Matthew Short sustained a quad injury against Afghanistan, which is expected to rule him out. Short suffered the injury late in Afghanistan's innings. Although he opened the batting alongside Travis Head, he struggled between the wickets and was largely limited to boundary-hitting. He managed to score 20 off 15 balls, contributing to a useful opening stand of 44 in 4.3 overs, before being caught at mid-on. However, captain Steven Smith acknowledged that time was not on Short's side. "I think he'll be struggling," Smith said at the post-match presentation. "I think we saw tonight he wasn't moving very well. I think it's probably going to be too quick between games for him to recover." Jake Fraser-McGurk, who replaced the injured Mitchell Marsh in the squad, is the available backup and a like-for-like swap for Short at the top of the order. However, Australia could explore other options, including all-rounder Aaron Hardie, if they opt to shuffle the batting lineup. "We've got a few guys there to come in and we'll be able to fill a job," he said. Left-handed batter and left-arm spinner Cooper Connolly, a travelling reserve, could be added to the squad if Short is officially ruled out for the remainder of the tournament. Short's absence would also remove a valuable spin-bowling option. He delivered an economical spell against Afghanistan, conceding just 21 runs in seven overs. However, Australia has additional part-time spin options in Head and Marnus Labuschagne, who took two wickets against England but was not used against Afghanistan. Australia has dealt with multiple injuries leading into the tournament. Marsh (back), Pat Cummins (ankle), Josh Hazlewood (hip), and Mitchell Starc (ankle) all missed matches, while Marcus Stoinis announced his retirement. A complicating factor for Group B qualifierswhere South Africa is favored to join Australiais that they will not know their semi-final venue (Dubai or Lahore) until after the India-New Zealand game on Sunday night. Group B standings will be finalised after South Africa faces England on Saturday. India and New Zealand have predetermined semi-final venues (India in Dubai and New Zealand in Lahore), but their final group positions will determine their opponents.
Express Tribune
01-03-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Australia dealt injury blow before Champions Trophy semi-final
Listen to article Australia has been dealt a significant blow ahead of their ICC Champions Trophy semi-final, with opener Matthew Short sustaining a knee injury during their rain-affected match against Afghanistan on February 27 at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium. This injury has raised serious doubts about his availability for the crucial semi-final, which will be played against either India or New Zealand next week. The injury has come as a major setback for Australia, who had secured their spot in the semi-finals after the washout. Despite the qualification, the mood was overshadowed by the concerns surrounding Short's fitness. Australian captain Steve Smith expressed doubts about Short's recovery, acknowledging that the opener was struggling to walk due to the injury, making it unlikely for him to be fit in time for the semi-final. In response to the uncertainty regarding Short's condition, the Australian team management has named Jack Fraser-McGurk as a replacement, should Short fail to recover in time. With Australia's hopes of a successful campaign now resting on Short's fitness, the team will be closely monitoring his progress in the lead-up to the knockout match.
Al Jazeera
28-02-2025
- Sport
- Al Jazeera
ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Australia reach last four; Afghanistan on brink
Australia reached the Champions Trophy semifinals after their last group game against Afghanistan was abandoned because of rain and a wet outfield. World Cup holders Australia, who achieved a record chase of 352 against England in the opening game, finished the group stage with four points after its last two games were washed out in Rawalpindi and Lahore. Afghanistan had three points and are on the verge of an exit. To advance, they need South Africa to lose by an improbable margin of more than 200 runs against already eliminated England in Saturday's Group B game. Afghanistan were bowled out for 273 on the final ball of their innings on Friday and Australia cruised to 109-1 in 12.5 overs when the rain returned. The outfield became too sodden to continue. Travis Head's 34-ball half-century had provided Australia with a rollicking start against some scratchy Afghanistan fielding and poor fast bowling. Rashid Khan couldn't hold onto a regulation catch when Head was on six. Head cut loose and motored Australia to 90-1 in the batting powerplay. Substitute fielder Nangeyalia Kharote dropped Matthew Short off Azmatullah Omarzai, but was dismissed two balls later when Gulbadin Naib took a smart catch over his shoulder at mid-on while running backwards. Fast bowling allrounder Omarzai, who grabbed his maiden five-wicket haul in Afghanistan's stunning eight-run win over England at the same venue, was smacked for 43 off his five overs while Fazalhaq Farooqi also erred a lot in his lengths and went for 32 off his three overs. Left-handed batter Sediqullah Atal (85) missed out on a century, but Omarzai held one end up with a 67-ball 63 that included five sixes. Spencer Johnson (2-49) and Ben Dwarshuis (3-47) struggled to control the swing with the new ball but both fast bowlers came back strongly with the old ball. Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz fell early for the third consecutive time when Johnson yorkered him without scoring off his fifth legitimate ball. Ibrahim Zadran, who recorded the tournament's highest score of 177 against England at the same venue on Wednesday, made 22 and was gutted when he was caught at point in Adam Zampa's (2-48) first over. Captain Steve Smith squeezed Afghanistan in the middle overs with his spinners as Matthew Short (0-21) conceded just one six in his tidy seven overs and Glenn Maxwell bowled a maiden while finding the edge of Rahmat Shah's bat (12). Atal tried to accelerate after captain Hashmatullah Shahidi struggled to keep the scoreboard moving, but Atal was caught by Smith at short cover in Johnson's return spell.
Express Tribune
28-02-2025
- Climate
- Express Tribune
Afg vs Aus Champions Trophy 2025 Live updates: Afghanistan win toss, elect to bat first vs Australia
Afghanistan won the toss against Australia and has opted to bat first. The match between Australia and Afghanistan in Group B, being played at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, is critical for both teams' bid for a semi-final spot. If Australia win today, they will qualify and Afghanistan will be knocked out. If Afghanistan win today, then they will qualify and Australia's Champions Trophy hopes would be based on tomorrow's result between South Africa and England. If the match is washed out due to rain, Australia will qualify for the semi-finals and Afghanistan's future will depend on the result of South Africa vs England. Playing XI: Australia: Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis †, Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz †, Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi Weather report: The highly anticipated Champions Trophy 2025 clash between Afghanistan and Australia faces uncertainty as rain threatens to disrupt the fixture in Lahore. Weather forecasts predict a 40-70 percent chance of rain between 6 AM and 3 PM on match day, with a 50 percent probability in the evening, raising concerns over delays or a possible washout. Australia's previous game against South Africa in Rawalpindi was abandoned due to rain, and a similar fate for this match could have significant consequences. If the game is washed out, Australia will secure a semifinal spot, while Afghanistan's hopes will hinge on the result of the South Africa vs England match. Pitch report: The Gaddafi Stadium pitch is tradionally batter-friendly, so there are possibilities of it being a high-scoring game. In case of dew in the evening, batting is easy in the second innings too. With an average scoring rate of 6.83, the track has consistently favoured stroke-makers. While there has been little movement for seamers, pacers might extract some spongy bounce off the surface. However, spinners are unlikely to find much assistance, as conditions continue to favour batters. The pitch is expected to play consistently across both innings, making chasing an attractive option. As a result, the team winning the toss will likely opt to bowl first. Head-to-head: Afghanistan and Australia have faced each other four times in ODI cricket, with Australia dominating every encounter. The Baggy Greens hold a perfect record, winning all four matches, while Afghanistan is yet to register a victory. Australia boasts a 100% win rate, while Afghanistan remains winless in this head-to-head battle. The two teams last met on 7 November 2023 in the 2023 ICC World Cup, when Australia secured a 3-wicket win at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai thanks to Glenn Maxwell playing one of the finest innings in ODI history. Prior to that, Australia triumphed by 7 wickets at the County Ground, Bristol, on 1 June 2019. Their most lopsided victory came on 4 March 2015, when they crushed Afghanistan by 275 runs at the W.A.C.A, Perth. The first-ever ODI encounter between the sides took place on 25 August 2012, with Australia winning by 66 runs in Sharjah.
