The Indian Cricket team is on the cusp of history as they’re just one step away from becoming the most successful team in the ICC Champions Trophy by winning three titles. Standing in the way of India’s another ICC triumph are their fiercest rivals, New Zealand.
India captain Rohit Sharma has already etched his name in the record books by becoming the first skipper to lead his team into the finals of all four ICC events and a win against the Kiwis will make him the second most successful captain of his country in the limited-overs format.
However, in order to do that, he will have to outsmart his adversary, Mitchell Santner, who is coming into the summit clash on the back of a match-winning spell in the semi-final against South Africa.
Champions Trophy: Full Coverage
The New Zealand captain is no stranger to India, who’s scripted numerous downfalls for the Men in Blue on several occasions in the past few years. While Santner’s overall numbers against India don’t look too threatening, the southpaw has been the wrecker-in-chief for them on the biggest of stages in the recent past.
Santner: India’s chief destroyer
The Hamilton-born cricketer started his love-affair against the Asian giants from the first match itself as his sensational spell of 4/11 (4 overs) in the T20 World Cup 2016, handed a shocking 47-run defeat to the hosts India in their opening encounter.
Five years later, Santner bowled another miserly spell of 0/15 (4 overs) in the next edition of the T20 World Cup in 2021, which played a key role in handing India an early exit from the tournament. During the all-important semi-final of the ODI World Cup 2019, Santner once again kept the Indian batters at bay in the middle overs, registering figures of 2/34 in ten overs and helped his team progress to the final.
Recently, he registered his best ever performance in Test cricket (13/157) in October 2024 to hand India their first series defeat on home soil since 2012. Santner knows how to get under the skin of Indian batters and has a great chance to be the thorn in their flesh in the upcoming encounter once again.
The left-arm spinner averages 61.20 in ODI cricket against the Men in Blue, however, his economy rate of 4.75 makes him a tricky customer to score against. In the semi-final against South Africa, Santner came into the attack in the 16th over and stopped the scoring rate, choking the Proteas batting. He got rid of both set batters, Temba Bavuma and Rassie van der Dussen and the dangerous Heinrich Klaasen in a space of four overs to derail South Africa’s chase.
Hence, India will have a herculean task to counter Santner’s threat in the all-important final. His tight lengths, coupled with the acrobatic fielding of the Kiwi players, is the perfect recipe for disaster for India. While Indian batters were able to take advantage of the fielding lapses of Pakistan and Bangladesh, they will be given no respite by New Zealand’s fielding unit.
Santner to take a leaf out of Pat Cummins’ book?
The Kiwis boast a collection of agile players, who put their bodies on the line, guarding all the crucial areas in the outfield. However, it’s not only Santner’s spin prowess which could script India’s downfall, as his shrewd leadership could also catch them off guard.
On 18th of November 2023, just a day ahead of the ODI World Cup 2023 final against India, Australia captain Pat Cummins famously said “There’s nothing more satisfying in sport than seeing a big crowd go silent.” Cummins stood true to his words the next day as he orchestrated India’s downfall with both his on-field performance and captaincy calls. He successfully silenced 1.3 lakh people at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, leading Australia to victory.
Being the leader of the team, Santner can take a leaf out of Cummins’ book and stun the entire cricketing fraternity by inspiring New Zealand to a roaring win in the highly-anticipated final. Being well aware of the weakness of several Indian batters, having bowled against them for a number of years, Santner will have plans to stop the Indian batting juggernaut and haunt the Men in Blue in another ICC event final.
Odds highly stacked in New Zealan’s favour
The odds are already stacked up with the Kiwis, who’ve beaten India in both the ICC finals contested between the two sides so far, namely the Champions Trophy final in 2000 and the World Test Championship (WTC) final in 2021.
Moreover, the Blackcaps also hold an edge over India in the history of ICC events, having beaten them ten times out of the 16 matches played between the two teams. Hence, India will be up against history as they take the field on Sunday with an aim to win the tournament and be called the most dominating white-ball team of the current era.
Led by Rohit Sharma, the Men in Blue have shown time and again that they’re never overawed by the occasion, showing no qualms on the big stage. The final presents a golden opportunity for both Rohit and Santner to lead their team to glory. It remains to be seen who will win the battle between the two captains and stake claim of the coveted trophy.
