AFG vs SA Dream11 Prediction: 3 players you can pick as captain or vice-captain for today’s Champions Trophy 2025 match – February 21, 2025
Afghanistan (AFG) go up against South Africa (SA) in the 3rd match of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 (CT 2025) on Friday, February 21, at the National Stadium in Karachi. This is the first Group B clash of CT 2025, with England and Australia set to face off in the next tomorrow.
Afghanistan's rise as an ODI team has been second to none, and while they will be second favorites walking into this match, the Proteas will be aware that their opponents most certainly have the resources to trouble them. On what should be a fairly high-scoring match, it'll come down to which team's bowlers can outperform the other's.
Let's now look at the top three Dream11 captaincy picks for this fixture.
#3 Rassie van der Dussen (BAT) (SA)
South Africa has one of the most fearsome batting lineups in CT 2025, no doubt about that. However, it's hard to really pinpoint where the runs are going to come from, and that's why it might be wise to back the team's most stable and consistent batter, Rassie van der Dussen.
Van der Dussen averages 48.31 with the bat in 62 ODI innings and will be the key to keeping the scoreboard ticking during the middle overs against the Afghan spinners. In his only innings against Afghanistan in this format, the 36-year-old batter played an unbeaten 76* to guide his team home in a run chase.
This consistent run accumulator should enjoy batting in CT 2025. He's definitely one of the best Dream11 captaincy options.
#2 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK) (AFG)
Rahmanullah Gurbaz will be a key figure for Afghanistan throughout the tournament, and should also be a popular Dream11 captaincy pick whenever they play. The wicket-keeper batter is set to open the batting with Ibrahim Zadran, and on what's set to be a flat deck at Karachi, he could really pile on the runs if he manages to negotiate the opening few overs with the new ball against a beleaguered Proteas pace attack.
Gurbaz enjoys batting against South Africa and has scored 219 runs in four innings, averaging a solid 54.75. The best part of his game is his boundary-hitting ability, which should fetch him even more points now due to the new Dream11 Fantasy points system.
He's a sure-shot candidate for captaincy in this match.
#1 Azmatullah Omarzai (ALL) (AFG)
One of Afghanistan's most important players in ODI cricket, Azmatullah Omarzai could also be a bankable Dream11 captaincy option. He has a terrific record with the bat in ODI cricket and can be a handful with the ball too, especially with the new ball.
Omarzai has scored 907 runs in 28 innings, averaging a terrific 47.73 with the bat, scoring at a strike rate of 97.21. He's also picked up 30 wickets at a reasonable economy rate of 5.38. Those batting numbers improve substantially going up against the Proteas.
Omarzai has scored 210 runs in three innings with only one dismissal, scoring at a powerful strike rate of 106.59. It's safe to say he's one of the best Dream11 captaincy picks in this fixture.