Eyes on the Prize: The Upcoming ICC Champions
New Zealand or India, who will take the trophy home? Join us in a quick recap and discussion on the ICC Champions Trophy Semi-Finals.
The world witnessed two of the most historic matches of the ICC Champions Trophy on the 4th and 5th of March, 2025. With Australia and India fighting tooth and nail to mark their place in the finals, India emerged as a clear winner by defeating Australia by 4 wickets. New Zealand, on the other hand, posed a massive score of 363 runs against South Africa. Even David Miller’s iconic century could not save the day for the South African dressing room as the Kiwis made their way into the finals.
Semi-Final 1: Aus vs IND
With the clear choice of batting first on 4th March, the Australian bowlers had clear intentions of making the Indian team suffer. But the Men in Blue proved their title of The Chase Masters to be true, yet again. With Virat Kohli’s extremely crucial innings of 84 runs, the Rohit Sharma-led team chased a target of 265 runs in 48.1 overs. Shreyas Iyer (45), KL Rahul (42 not out), and Hardik Pandya (28) played crucial roles in consolidating the team’s place in the finals. Mohammed Shami was the pick of Indian bowlers with figures of 3 for 48, while Varun Chakravarthy and Ravindra Jadeja picked two wickets. On the Australian front, things seemed to have gone south because of their misjudged fielding and bowling.
Semi-Final 2: NZ vs SA
Scoring the massive total of 364 runs, New Zealand showcased another level and class of cricket on the 5th of March, 2025. The Kiwi bowlers dominated the South African team all throughout the second half of their innings. Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra's centuries powered New Zealand, whereas David Miller’s century couldn’t do much to save the day for South Africa. Rachin slammed 108 while Williamson became the first New Zealand batter to achieve the landmark of 19,000 international runs during his knock of 102. Overall, it was a match that might have initiated introspection in the South African dressing room.
D-Day: 9th March, 2025
India and New Zealand are all set to face each other on the 9th of March for the ICC Champions Trophy finals in Dubai. Both the teams have been practicing rigorously for the finals, and many of the Indian cricket team players have even resorted to physical therapy to be at their best during the game. Both New Zealand and India have an excellent selection of players and have worked hard to gain that balance and momentum in their team. The teams have faced each other for the ICC World Cup 2007 and ICC World Cup Final 2003, with India winning the former and New Zealand winning the latter.
The Excitement
No country in this world can beat India when it comes to the excitement surrounding cricket. The tickets for the finals were sold out five minutes after India was announced as a finalist. This level of dedication is unreal. Even the Home Minister of India, Amit Shah, congratulated the team for making it to the finals and expressed his excitement. Rahul Gandhi praised the Indian team's skill and determination, highlighting Virat Kohli's contribution and expressing national pride in their achievement. Fans and celebrities have been over the moon with Team India’s performance, and they’re thrilled to witness this historic match on March 9th.
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