In a Champions Trophy match held in Lahore, Josh Inglis struck his maiden ODI century as Australia chased down a spectacular five-wicket victory against England, setting a new record for the highest successful run chase in Champions Trophy history.
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02-23, 2025England's Ben Duckett smashed 165 off 143 balls, propelling England to a total of 8-351, surpassing New Zealand's previous Champions Trophy best of 4-347 against the USA at The Oval in 2004. However, England's record lasted only a few hours as Australia, thanks to Inglis' heroics, overhauled the target with 5-356 with 15 balls to spare.
The Leeds-born wicketkeeper blasted an unbeaten 120 off 86 balls, including eight fours and six sixes, in what was a landmark innings. He received strong support from fellow wicketkeeper Alex Carey (69 off 63 balls), opener Matt Short (63 off 66 balls), Marnus Labuschagne (47 off 45 balls) and Glenn Maxwell (32 not out off 15 balls), all of whom contributed to ensuring Australia got off to a winning start in the tournament.
Australia will face South Africa on Tuesday and Afghanistan on Friday (AEDT), with another win likely enough to secure their place in the semi-finals as one of the top two teams in Group B. "I'm absolutely stoked. It was a great win," Inglis said. "We knew it was going to be tough against England and 350 … a lot had to go right to chase that down." "Personally, I'm absolutely thrilled, and for the guys out there, it was a great game." "It's only a short, sharp tournament, so it's important to get wins early."
Duckett, in his brilliant knock, smashed 17 fours and three sixes, making the most of Australia's decision to bowl first on a batter-friendly wicket. Joe Root contributed 68 off 78 balls, forming a 158-run partnership with Duckett. Duckett achieved a personal milestone, with his total being the highest individual score in Champions Trophy history, surpassing New Zealand's Nathan Astle's 145 against the USA in 2004.
Carey, usually behind the stumps, proved to be an unexpected star in the field for Australia, taking three catches. The 33-year-old earned gasps from the crowd with a diving, one-handed grab at mid-off to dismiss opener Phil Salt in the second over. He later proved it was no fluke with another brilliant diving catch to remove Harry Brook. "At one point, they looked like they might get over 400, so we were happy with the way we pegged it back," Australia captain Steve Smith said of his side's bowling performance. "We thought 350-odd was chaseable, and we had the confidence we could chase it down."
But the chase didn't start smoothly. Travis Head was caught and bowled by Jofra Archer for just six, and when captain Smith edged Mark Wood behind, Australia were reeling at 2-27. Labuschagne, entering the tournament under immense pressure, steadied the ship with a 95-run partnership with Short. But the pair fell within 14 runs of each other to leave Australia in trouble at 4-136, before wicketkeepers Carey and Inglis took the game away from England. Inglis, in particular, looked supremely confident as he peppered the ground with a range of shots and sweeps that visibly frustrated the England players.
Archer missed a regulation catch at long-on when Carey was on 49, with Australia at 4-248, a missed opportunity that proved costly for England. This helped Australia record their second-highest ODI chase in their history, only behind their 6-359 against India in 2019. It also marks the highest successful men's run chase in ICC tournament history.
