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Sa Vs Nz Match Prediction Who Will Win Todays Champions Trophy 2025 Semi Final Between South Africa And New Zealand

SA vs NZ Match Prediction: Who Will Win Today's Champions Trophy 2025 Semi-Final Between South Africa And New Zealand?

South Africa vs New Zealand (Source: @ProteasMenCSA/X.com, @BLACKCAPS/X.com)

Nothing gets better than South Africa and New Zealand facing off in the semi-final, especially when it's the Champions Trophy 2025. This high-stake encounter will be held at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, on Wednesday, March 5th, 2025, from 2:30 PM IST.

The South African side, led by Temba Bavuma, finished first on the table after winning two of their two completed matches, while one was abandoned due to rain. They ended with five points and a healthy NRR of +2.395 to end as the leaders of Group B.

Although they are in top-notch form, they might be sweating on the fitness of their regular skipper, Temba Bavuma, who missed the last game against England due to an injury where Aiden Markram led the side in an interim capacity.

They are full of confidence, with plenty of all-rounders on their side who can take the game away from the opposition in a jiffy. The return of Heinrich Klaasen has undoubtedly boosted their chances in this high-profile event.

Conversely, the New Zealand team, under the leadership of Mitchell Santner, has proved to be quite effective in these conditions. They ended Group A in second position after winning two of their three matches while losing the one against the dominant Indian team.

Kiwis qualified for the semi-finals after beating the Bangladesh and host Pakistan side from their group. As for the BlackCaps, they are coming off a loss against the Indian team by 44 runs after failing to chase down 250, where Kane Williamson was the top performer for them with 81.

Meanwhile, their bowlers have been decent, especially Matt Henry, who bowled exceptionally well in the last match, picking a five-wicket haul to rock India and will be highly crucial on flat surfaces in Lahore.

Now, dating back to 2015, both these sides share a great history in semi-final games, and it will eventually be down to who performs under the pressure in this cut-throat encounter.

Injury Looms Over Markram, Bavuma; SA Call-Up All-Rounder As Cover Before CT Semis

Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore Pitch Report: How Will The Surface Behave

Playing at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore means, more often than not, the side batting first will score 300-plus runs on the board. It was evident in the first two completed games played here in the ongoing Champions Trophy 2025, as in the first game between England and Australia, 352 was chased with ease, while in the second game between Afghanistan and England, 325 played 317.

In the third game, when rain intervened, Afghanistan were bowled out for 273, but expect that to be a one-off case as the pitch here generally is a batting paradise. Bowlers find hardly anything from the surface, apart from the last game when it swung miles in the initial overs, which is a rarity on this venue. Therefore, the team winning the toss will likely bowl first at this track, as chasing under lights is a pretty comfortable task.

SA vs NZ: Predicted Top Picks With Player Stats

Players Name	Tournament Stats
South Africa
Ryan Rickelton	130 runs in 2 games
Heinrich Klaasen	64 runs in 1 game
Wiaan Mulder	5 wickets in 2 games
New Zealand
Tom Latham	187 runs in 3 games
Rachin Ravindra	118 runs in 2 games
Matt Henry	8 wickets in 3 games

SA vs NZ: Predicted Game Changers

Heinrich Klaasen

South Africa's Heinrich Klaasen is a gun performer with the bat, especially in the death overs of the game. After missing out on injury earlier, Klaasen returned to the final group stage game against England and played a solid 64-run knock off 56 deliveries with 11 fours to his name.

In his overall ODI career, Klaasen has scored 2,138 runs in 59 matches at an average of 44.54, where his strike rate has been impressive at 117.34.

Klaasen's role becomes crucial in the final few overs when the opposition tries to squeeze with the ball, but this right-handed superstar generally goes on a rampage with his thoroughly powerful shots a he does the finishing job exceptionally well with his long range.

Tom Latham

The best performer for New Zealand in this Champions Trophy 2025 has been Tom Latham with the bat. The left-handed batter has scored 187 runs in three matches at an average of 93.50.

The interesting thing about Latham is his ability to accelerate in the death overs of the game after starting a little cautiously, and he demonstrated that against Pakistan by scoring a brilliant 118* off 104 deliveries.

In the next match against Bangladesh, he played a fluent 55 to power his side to victory by five wickets. Additionally, he is a brilliant player of spin, with his sweeps and reverse sweeps coming in handy.