"England, bye-bye, tata" - Aakash Chopra on Jos Buttler and Co.'s exit from 2025 Champions Trophy

Former India player Aakash Chopra has lauded Afghanistan for knocking England out of the 2025 Champions Trophy. He noted that the 2019 ODI World Cup champions had big names in their contingent but failed to deliver.

Afghanistan set England a 326-run target after opting to bat first in a 2025 Champions Trophy Group B game in Lahore on Wednesday, February 26. Hashmatullah Shahidi's side then bowled Jos Buttler and company out for 317 to register an eight-run win.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener praised Afghanistan for beating England on an unfavorable pitch and knocking them out of the tournament.

"Team Afghanistan, you beauty. Take a bow. You people are incredible. You are a different level team. All of you are superstars. You have played cricket with limited means. They started from refugee camps and are making big teams lick the dust in a very short span of time. They are a giant-killing team," he said (0:01).

"They beat England last time as well in the World Cup. They beat them this time too and on a pitch where the ball wasn't stopping or getting stuck. This is not the pitch that Afghanistan likes but they still won. England, bye-bye, tata. Delulu is the only solulu for them. Big names but no performances. That's England for you," Chopra added.

Aakash Chopra opined that Afghanistan would have surely reached the 2025 Champions Trophy semi-finals, which they still can, had they played their matches on the spin-friendly pitches in Dubai. He added that they beat England despite batting first on a chase-friendly Lahore ground.

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"He plays clean cricket" - Aakash Chopra lauds Ibrahim Zadran's century in AFG vs ENG 2025 Champions Trophy clash

Ibrahim Zadran scored 177 runs off 146 deliveries in Afghanistan's 2025 Champions Trophy clash against England. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra lauded Ibrahim Zadran (177 runs off 146 balls) for helping Afghanistan set a challenging target for England in their 2025 Champions Trophy clash.

"We have praised Ibrahim Zadran a lot on this show because he plays clean cricket. He scored 177 runs, the highest score in the history of the Champions Trophy. It wasn't just a century. 177 runs is a lot. He took the team to 325. It seemed like he would score 200 as time was left but he kept hitting, and the others did that as well," he said (3:00).

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the Afghanistan batters exposed England's bowling shortcomings in Wednesday's game.

"Jofra Archer bowled well but England's bowling weaknesses once again came to the fore. (Mark) Wood's injury didn't help but that team does not have that much bowling might and that's why Liam Livingstone was bowling in the end. Got lucky, got wickets, but that's not how you actually win a game," Chopra elaborated.

Chopra also praised Azmatullah Omarzai (5/58 in 9.5 overs) and the other Afghanistan bowlers for taking their team to a narrow win.

"When it was the turn to bowl, Azmatullah Omarzai came and bowled bouncers. He is a cricketer with a big heart. He took a fifer. Fazalhaq Farooqi was on one leg at one stage but he too bowled well. Rashid Khan picked up a wicket and Mohammad Nabi picked up wickets at the start, and they won the game by the skin of their teeth," he observed.

Aakash Chopra appreciated Joe Root (120 off 111) for scoring a fighting century in the chase. However, he added that England were not worth talking about, highlighting that players like Ben Duckett were talking about beating India in the semi-finals but might not even win a game in the 2025 Champions Trophy.