3 Areas South Africa Need To Work On To Win Champions Trophy 2025

Abhinav Tyagi

South Africa- (Source:@SRHorangearmy/X.com)South Africa- (Source:@SRHorangearmy/X.com)

The Champions Trophy starts in less than three weeks. Pakistan will host the prestigious event from February 19, where eight teams will battle it out to win the elite trophy that returns after a long hiatus of 8 years. 

Talking about South Africa, the Proteas have had a wonderful last few years, where they have reached finals or the last four of every major ICC event. Talking about the 2023 World Cup, they lost in the semis and then suffered a heartbreak in the 2024 T20 World Cup final after getting defeated by India. 

In the last couple of tournaments, the Proteas have come close but missed a trick that would have ended their ICC trophy drought. Meanwhile, this article will shed light on three crucial areas where South Africa need to work to win the prestigious fifty-over event.

1. Play Under Pressure

One of the major issues that has been persistent with South Africa over the years is their ability to collapse under pressure. As seen in the 2023 World Cup semi-finals vs Australia and the 2024 T20 World Cup final vs India, the Proteas failed to chase the target and collapsed under pressure. 

South Africa have made a name for itself for not being able to chase the target and earned the tag of 'Chokers'. However, if South Africa manage to overcome their fear of chasing the target, then it will be a force to be reckoned with. 

2. Weak Spin Bowling

Another area where South Africa need to work on is their spin bowling. Every other team have star spinners, in particular, Afghanistan, who are filled with world-class spin bowling options. 

For South Africa, they have Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi but will enter the tournament with one of the weakest spin bowling options. 

3.Injured Seam Attack

South Africa are known for their lethal pack battery. However, the Proteas are sweating in panic as most of their seamers are injured. Notably, Anrich Nortje has been ruled out of the tournament, while Gerald Coetzee and Lungi Ngidi are racing against time to get fit in time for Champions Trophy 2025. 

Thus, South Africa need to work on the replacements and also manage players' workload management to further not loose players because of injuries.