Afghanistan and South Africa will play one another in a bilateral series for the first time in history as a three-ODI series is set to be played in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from September 18 to 22.
Cricket South Africa (CSA) and the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) confirmed the series which will be the first meeting between the two sides outside ICC events.
Afghanistan and the Proteas have faced one another in a 50-over match twice before in the 2019 and 2023 ODI World Cup with South Africa winning the encounters on both occasions.
On the other hand, in T20Is, they have met three times in T20 World Cups 2010, 2016 and 2024, where the Proteas won on all occasions as well.
The most recent meeting between the two sides was in the T20 World Cup 2024 where South Africa, led by Aiden Markram, defeated Rashid Khan’s side in a one-sided semi-final.
CSA Chairman Lawson Naidoo declared the tour “a significant milestone” in South Africa and Afghanistan's cricketing relations.
“We are excited to embark on this historic ODI series with Afghanistan, who have become a very competitive all-round team as evidenced by their recent performances in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 and most recently at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024,” Naidoo said.
"This is a significant milestone in our cricketing relations, and we look forward to a competitive and entertaining series.”
Meanwhile, the ACB Chairman Mirwais Ashraf said they are looking forward to playing against South Africa as they are an excellent team.
“These fixtures were not initially part of our FTP. Still, based on our productive negotiations with our counterparts at Cricket South Africa, we concluded that we will host the Proteas for an ODI series in September. They are an excellent team, and we are eagerly looking forward to hosting them and playing them regularly in the future,” Ashraf said.
ODI Series Schedule:
Wednesday, 18 September
Afghanistan vs South Africa, 1st ODI, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE
Friday, 20 September
Afghanistan vs South Africa, 2nd ODI, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE
Sunday, 22 September
Afghanistan vs South Africa, 3rd ODI, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE
