Champions Trophy 2025: England Bat First Against South Africa in Jos Buttler’s Farewell as Captain
England have won the toss and opted to bat first against South Africa in their final Group B match of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy at the National Stadium, Karachi.
England Wins Toss, Elects to Bat Against South Africa in Final Group B Clash
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Karachi: England have won the toss and opted to bat first against South Africa in their final Group B match of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy at the National Stadium, Karachi. This marks Jos Buttler’s last game as England’s white-ball captain after announcing his resignation on Friday.
While England are already eliminated, South Africa have a golden opportunity to secure a semi-final spot and finish as Group B toppers with a victory.
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Jos Buttler Reflects on His Final Game as England Captain
After winning the toss, Buttler confirmed a change in England’s XI, with Saqib Mahmood replacing Mark Wood, who suffered a knee injury.
“Looks a decent wicket, few cracks in it. Felt like the right time, no need to wait around and make that decision. Time to move on,” Buttler stated.
Expressing his emotions on his final game as captain, Buttler added:
“A bit of sadness as well, it’s an honour to captain your country, something you dream about. Honoured to do it one last time and would like to go out with a good performance.”
South Africa Eye Semi-Final Spot, Make Key Changes
South Africa’s Aiden Markram will lead the side, as regular captain Temba Bavuma and Tony de Zorzi miss out due to illness. Wicketkeeper-batter Tristan Stubbs will open, with Heinrich Klaasen bolstering the middle order.
“Happy to chase against a strong English team. Not too disappointed. Unfortunate that they (Bavuma and de Zorzi) miss out, but hopefully, they will recover. Our last game (against Australia) got rained out, we had a few training sessions, we are ready for this game,” said Markram.
Playing XIs for England vs South Africa
England:
Philip Salt, Ben Duckett, Jamie Smith (wk), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (captain), Liam Livingstone, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood
South Africa:
Tristan Stubbs, Ryan Rickelton, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram (captain), Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi
