"Australia qualified with help of Rain"- Top 10 funny memes as Australia reach semi-finals after 2025 CT clash vs Afghanistan ended without a result

Australia's last group match of the 2025 Champions Trophy against Afghanistan was abandoned after persistent rain at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Friday, February 28.

As a result, both teams shared one point each, and Australia became the first team to qualify for the semi-finals from Group B. Afghanistan still has a slim chance of advancing in the tournament. They require England to beat South Africa by a massive margin on Saturday.

Afghanistan batted first after winning the toss and notched up a respectable total of 273 in 50 overs. It came on the back of contributions from Sediqullah Atal (85) and Azmatullah Omarzai (67). Ben Dwarshuis (3/47), Spencer Johnson (2/49), and Adam Zampa (2/48) were among the wickets for the Aussie side in the bowling department.

In reply, Travis Head (59*) hit a blazing half-century to power his side to 109/1 in 12.5 overs before rain intervened in the proceedings and halted the game. Further play was not possible as match officials called off the game after an hour, which meant the match ended without a result.

After the game was called off without a result, fans expressed their reactions by sharing hilarious memes on X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram. One of the memes read:

"Australia qualified with the help of Rain. They got saved twice -once from Temba Bavuma -again from Afghan biceps"

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"That is what we were after at the start of the tournament"- Australia captain Steve Smith on reaching semis of 2025 Champions Trophy

After their last group match ended without a result, Australian skipper Steve Smith expressed satisfaction on qualifying for the semi-finals. Reflecting on his team's performance, Smith said:

"That is what we were after at the start of the tournament — finishing in the top two — and we seem to be on track. I though the guys did a really good job to restrict them to 273. There were a few extras. Spencer (Johnson) was getting the ball to swing a long way. (Josh) Inglis was happy when he was done with his spell."

He continued:

"It was good performance. Shame that it got washed out towards the end. (On Short's injury) I think Matthew Short is struggling. It will be two quick between two games for him to recover. Travis Head got a reprieve early, but then he was hitting the middle of the bat consistently. We know when he gets going, he is as good as anyone in the world. The first objective was getting to the semis. We are there. And we know finals are a different beast altogether."

South Africa will face England in the 11th match of the 2025 Champions Trophy at the National Stadium in Karachi on Saturday.