LAHORE: Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott has warned the Australia team ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 clash on Friday.
After suffering defeat against South Africa in their opening match, Afghanistan bounced back and eliminated England from the tournament in a thrilling eighth match on Tuesday.
Chasing a daunting total of 326 in a virtual knockout, England were bowled out on 317 in 49.5 overs. Afghanistan Azmatullah Omarzai starred with the ball, taking a five-wicket haul.
After his team’s thrilling victory, Trott said no side would ever take Afghanistan lightly again.
Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel
“What happened in the World Cup, T20 World Cup, and [now], I say this to the players: Afghanistan’s never going to be taken lightly ever again,” he said.
“In the past, perhaps people would have seen the fixture and thought it was a little bit easier than playing a historic Test nation,” he added.
He further said that due to the tournament’s format and conditions, I expect that Australia would not take us lightly.
“But in this format, in these conditions, I don’t see that. I see every game that we play is going to be competitive, and every game we go into I expect to win. Australia aren’t going to take us lightly.” said Trott.
Catch every Champions Trophy update here!
Jonathan Trott further highlighted Afghanistan’s rise after he took over the coaching reins in 2022.
“Since I’ve been coach, we’ve played against Australia three times, and we’ve been in each of those games,” Trott remarked.
“I’ll tell the players to enjoy tonight. I will make sure when they wake up tomorrow, they’re ready for Australia immediately. The focus is on Australia. That’s how the players are going to be and that’s what I’ll tell the fans,” he concluded.
Afghanistan has made significant progress in international cricket for the unversed, beating top sides like Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and England to finish sixth in the 2023 ODI World Cup held in India.
Furthermore, they also reached the 2024 T20 World Cup semi-finals for the first time, beating Australia in the group stage.
READ: ‘He’s exactly what white-ball cricket needs’: Ian Bishop backs THIS batter for Pakistan return