England lost its second match in the ICC Champions Trophy to Afghanistan by eight runs on Wednesday and was knocked out of the race to the semifinals.
South Africa, Australia, and Afghanistan are the teams which remain in contention for the last four from Group B. In the final round of fixtures in the group, South Africa faces England while Australia takes on Afghanistan.
Here is what the teams need to do to qualify for the semifinals:
SOUTH AFRICA (3 points)
South Africa needs to win its final match against England to assure a spot in the semifinals.
However, a Net Run Rate (NRR) of +2.140 means it can squeeze through even with a loss. If it loses to England in its final game, it needs Afghanistan to beat Australia, which has an NRR at +0.475. In this case, South Africa will just need to avoid a huge defeat to keep its NRR greater than Australia’s.
AUSTRALIA (3 points)
Australia also sits on three points and its safest route to the semifinals is by beating Afghanistan in the last group game.
If it loses that match, Australia requires South Africa to lose its match against England by a big margin. This would ensure the Proteas’ NRR drops below Australia’s.
AFGHANISTAN (2 points)
The only way for Afghanistan to the semifinals is by beating Australia in the last match. In case it loses, Afghanistan will be knocked out of the Champions Trophy.