Parthiv Patel names his dark horse for Champions Trophy: They can surprise everyone
Former India wicketkeeper batter Parthiv Patel feels Afghanistan will be the dark horse of the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The 50-over event is all set to begin from February 19 and will feature eight teams divided into two groups. Afghanistan have been placed in Group B alongside Australia, England and South Africa.
The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side has been performing well in the ICC events in recent times as they were in contention to qualify for the semi-finals of the ODI World Cup 2023. Afghanistan further qualified for the semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2024 after a thumping win over Australia.
IND vs ENG, 3rd ODI Live
Hence, keeping their recent performances in mind, Patel picked them as a dark horse for the upcoming event as he predicted his four semi-finalists. He also backed Afghanistan to spring a few surprises during the tournament.
“There’ll be India, Pakistan, South Africa, and Australia just given the record in the ICC trophies. But my dark horse is Afghanistan. They’ve got they’ve played really good cricket in 50-over format. It was just that Glenn Maxwell’s innings otherwise I think they were right there in the race to reach semifinals. So you know Afghanistan could come in and surprise all other teams,” said Patel on Star Sports.
Furthermore, Kevin Pietersen also named his four semi-finalists for the event and excluded an injury-laden Australia from his top four.
“I mean, this is so hard. It really is. But with Mitchell Starc pulling out today, I’m gonna say India, Pakistan, South Africa, and New Zealand,” said Pietersen.
Mitchell Starc has decided to withdraw from the tournament due to personal reasons, which means Australia will be without their famed pace trio in the mega event. Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood have already decided to sit out of the Champions Trophy due to injury concerns.
Marcus Stoinis will also be absent from the squad after he announced his sudden ODI retirement ahead of the tournament. Meanwhile, Mitchell Marsh has also withdrawn from the 50-over event due to personal reasons. Hence, Australia will be without most of their first-choice players in the tournament and will be led by Steve Smith.
