India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir, captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli during a practice session on the eve of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final match against New Zealand, at Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on March 8, 2025
| Photo Credit:
ANI
India and New Zealand will face each other today (March 9, 2025), little over two weeks after the eagerly watched 2025 Champions Trophy began, for the final match in Dubai. The two sides, with similar depth in their squads, appeared the most sorted among the eight in the lead-up to the event. And it is not wholly surprising they have made it thus far.
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India have always found the resilient Kiwis a tall mountain to surmount, as the latter hold a 10-6 lead over their Asian rivals across all the ICC tournaments. If curated further, New Zealand have a 3-1 edge over India in the ICC knockout matches.
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A big challenge for New Zealand will be how they handle India’s quartet of spinners, which could decide the outcome of the contest. In the group stage match against India, Varun Chakarvarthy left the Black Caps batting line-up in disarray. Meanwhile, knocks of substance from Kohli and Rohit will add gravitas to the occasion, the team will eye a fine effort from vice-captain Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya.
(With inputs from agencies)
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