AUS vs ENG ICC Champions Trophy 2025
In the fourth Group B ICC Champions Trophy match, cricket enthusiasts saw an amazing clash between Australia and England (AUS vs ENG). With Australia effectively chasing down 352 runs, the biggest run chase in an ICC event, the high-scoring game in Lahore concluded with scripting history for Australia. With a match-winning undefeated century, Josh Inglis turned out to be the outstanding player. Let us explore the complete match report, pivotal events, and study of this exciting fight.
Match Overview
Match: 4th Match, Group B, ICC Champions Trophy 2025
Venue: Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Date: February 22, 2025
Result: Australia won by 5 wickets (with 15 balls remaining)
Player of the Match: Josh Inglis (Australia) – 120* (86)
Highest Individual Score: Ben Duckett (England) – 165 (143)
Match Scorecard
With a record knock of 165, Ben Duckett supplied the ruthlessness England so sorely needed. But Josh Inglis pummelled a poor England pace attack and drove Australia to the highest successful chase in men’s ICC tournament history, so negating his heroics.
With little margin for error for the bowlers on such a friendly surface, batting totally dominated this Champions Trophy blockbuster in the first match at an ICC event in Lahore since March 1996.
England-born Inglis produced his maiden ODI century to finish undefeated on 120 from 86 balls with a mix of creative strokes and hefty backfoot punches as Australia reached the goal of 352 with relative simplicity in the 48th over. With Australia ranking second in successful ODI chase following their 359 for 6 against India in Mohali in 2019, England’s bowlers battled to manage the dew under lights.
For England, who now must-win against Afghanistan and South Africa, it was a terrible letdown. Though Duckett’s amazing 165 off 143 was the highest individual score in Champions Trophy history, they will eventually lament slightly inadequate performance with the bat. Joe Root gave him great support; he scored a tidy 68 in a third-wicket stand of 158.
England took full impact on the least experienced Australian attack at an ICC ODI event since 1983 and achieved the highest-ever total in the tournament although no other batter scoring more than 25 runs. While seam-bowling all arounders Cameron Green, Mitchell Marsh and Marcus Stoinis are all absent, they were without frontline quicks Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc.
On this level surface, though, the outcome was not a fait accompli given Australia’s formidable batting line-up. Two early wickets for Australia matched England’s after Travis Head and stand-in captain Steven Smith fell in the powerplay.
Head loomed as the key, having scorched an amazing century the last time he was glimpsed at a 50-over ICC event. On 6 his swipe touched the bat’s toe-end and Jofra Archer held a quick return catch.
Smith could only edge to slip a hard-length delivery from speedster Mark Wood, who was in fantastic rhythm and often topping 150 kph. But Matthew Short and Marnus Labuschagne rallied with a 95-run stand since they particularly enjoyed wayward fast Brydon Carse.
Short overcame a lean run of form by brilliantly harnessing the pace of England’s quicks, then Liam Livingstone squeezed the batters with his legsperson bow.
Australia fell to 136 for 4; a disgruntled Labuschagne blasted a slow 70 kph legbreak from Rashid straight to cover before Short on 63 provided a return catch to Livingstone.
Rashid was removed off the assault, though, following his six-over spell, allowing Inglis and Alex Carey to relax. Having each recorded counterattacking Test century against Sri Lanka, the pair displayed their great form as they climbed on top of a failing England pace attack.
Carey grudgingly celebrated his half-century after striking Rashid straight to deep midwicket only for Archer to drop a sitter. As the wheels started to fall off for England, Inglis smashed Archer for consecutive boundaries.
Carey smashed Carse straight to mid-off with 70 still needed off 50 balls just as Australia began to acquire control. But Inglis remained unaffected and mowed a six off Archer to reach his century in fashion.
Before Inglis appropriately sealed triumph with a six in a great victory for World Cup champions Australia, whose title ambitions ahead of the competition had mostly been written off, Glenn Maxwell was relentless.
After being convinced that dew would play a role under lights, Smith decided to bowl following Australia’s first-time absence of their major three quicks from an ICC event.
Australia’s much reduced assault was under immediate demand on a road of a pitch. Though Australia lacked Starc, Ben Dwarshuis handed the new ball and Spencer Johnson, whose signature golden locks had been cut off, was not short in aggressive left-arm quicks.
Though his two early wickets were primarily from reckless strokes, Dwarshuis was chosen ahead of Sean Abbott, who had participated in both of Australia’s ODI games in Sri Lanka, for match-up reasons.
Initially, England’s rearranged batting line-up did not go as intended. Early they went a bit hard, Phil Salt collapsing in the second over after falling to clear the on-side as a high-flying Carey snatched a one-handed blinder of a catch to his right in a common bane for them.
As an outfield player, it was an amazing first-ever ODI catch for Carey that helped support the decision to keep the gloves for Inglis, the current white-ball wicketkeeper.
With Jamie Smith batting at No. 3 for the first time in international cricket – and only the second time in his List A career – all eyes were on him, forcing Root, Harry Brook, and Jos Buttler to move down from their normal places.
Before falling gently to the on-side where Carey took a lot simpler catch on this occasion, Smith stroked a few beautiful cover drives.
England did not want to be 43 for 2, but they recovered fast as Duckett and Root cashed in on poor bowling from Johnson and Dwarshuis. Duckett had begun quite slowly, but he shot a boundary off the last powerplay pass as England headed to 73 for 2.
Once the constraints were relaxed, Smith went back to spin, but Duckett and Root turned the stroke with such ease that there was little turn on offer. Smith used four sweepers and adopted somewhat conservative methods.
Duckett targeted Maxwell straight to show his enhanced ground-based hitting ability, and he reached his half-century in style with a horizontal bat stroke against Johnson.
Root was deftly manipulating the gaps to reach his half-century off 56 balls, not bothered about hitting limits. He was making it seem effortless. With England aiming for a total in the upper 300s, he had a fantastic chance to break a protracted ODI century drought reaching to the World Cup.
Root, who was in a terrific spell and missed a rare attempted sweep to fall in a tight lbw following an ineffective review, was anchored down by legspinner Adam Zampa. Australia battled back through Zampa, whose modest changes worked well and explained Brook with Carey making another great catch following a diving attempt going backwards at point.
The only bowler with an economy of less than six, Seamer Nathan Ellis also made use of his observed defensive abilities and gave only 51 runs off his 10 overs.
Like they did against Australia at Trent Bridge last September, England worried about letting slip a magnificent platform. Duckett, though, kept things under control and hit consecutive boundaries off Johnson to earn his third ODI century.
Though obviously tired, he pounded the air in celebration without wavering in his concentration. Duckett’s outstanding innings came to an end in the 48th over when he was caught lbw by Labuschagne, who was preferred over Johnson at the death and ended with 2 for 41 off five overs.
Archer struck a flurry at the death, but later in the evening his mood darkened.
