India vs New Zealand: Having faced each other in the group stages, India and New Zealand will once again face off in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 on Sunday (March 9) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. India have been unbeaten in the tournament so far, while New Zealand’s only loss came against the Men in Blue.
In fact, this is the second time India and New Zealand are playing against each other in an ICC Champions Trophy final. The last time both teams played in a final against each other was back in 2000 when New Zealand won by four wickets.
Varun Chakaravarthy’s spin magic
The decision to include Varun Chakaravarthy at the last moment seems to have worked for the Indian team in the ICC Champions Trophy. After warming the bench in the first two games, Varun Chakaravarthy took seven wickets in the next two matches, including a fifer. The addition of the Tamil Nadu spinner not only added cushion to Kuldeep Yadav’s workload but has also bolstered the Indian bowling, especially in the middle overs, as the 33-year-old comes with a variety of variations. In fact, his five-wicket haul came against New Zealand in the group stage.
Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson threat
Both Rachin Ravindra and Kane Williamson are coming into the final on the back of stunning hundreds against South Africa in the semifinals. The duo put on a partnership of 164 runs to take the game away from the Proteas. In fact, Rachin Ravindra had also scored a ton against Bangladesh and will be a serious threat to the Indian attack.
Rohit Sharma’s lean patch
India captain Rohit Sharma‘s form in the tournament has also been a major talking point. Even legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar took a dig at Rohit Sharma’s form ahead of the final. Coming into the tournament after scoring a 119 against England in the ODI series, Rohit Sharma has not been able to replicate the same form in the Champions Trophy with scores of 41, 20, 15 and 28. Although the Indian captain has been able to provide quick starts, but he has failed to convert them into big scores.
Dubai pitch factor
The wickets in Dubai have been a major talking point for most part of the tournament. The pitch has aided spinners more than the fast bowlers in the four matches played in this stadium. One of the major highlights of the Dubai pitches has been that it helps the batters when the ball is new, but once the match gets 10-15 overs old, it starts to become slow, thus bringing the spinners more into play. The highest score in Dubai in the Champions Trophy 2025 was 264 by Australia, which India overhauled with 11 balls to spare in the first semifinal.
The Matt Henry factor
Despite concerns over a shoulder injury, Matt Henry remains one of the talking points as the New Zealander leads the chart with 10 wickets so far in the tournament. In fact, five of those 10 wickets have come against India. Matt Henry looked lethal against the Men in Blue, reducing the Indians to 30/3 before a class rescue act by Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer. Along with pace, Matt Henry combines good seam movement, which makes it difficult for the opposition batters.
