The Indian cricket team made one change for their Champions Trophy 2025 match against New Zealand in Dubai, replacing fast bowler Harshit Rana with spinner Varun Chakravarthy. Reports suggested Mohammed Shami might be rested, but he was included alongside all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Both teams had already secured semifinal spots, with the match determining Group A’s leader. New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner won the toss and chose to bowl first, bringing in Daryl Mitchell for Devon Conway. India’s lineup includes key players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, while both teams aim to perform well ahead of the semifinals.
The Indian cricket team made a single alteration to their lineup for the Champions Trophy 2025 Group A clash against New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday. Fast bowler Harshit Rana was omitted from the squad, with spinner Varun Chakravarthy stepping in as his replacement. Although there were suggestions that Mohammed Shami might sit out the match, the team management opted to retain him as a quick bowling option alongside all-rounder Hardik Pandya. The rest of the team remained unchanged, featuring both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The victor of this contest will top Group A, as both teams have already secured their positions in the semifinals. (India vs New Zealand LIVE Score)
Mitchell Santner won the toss and chose to bowl first.
This match marked Virat Kohli as the 22nd player overall and the seventh Indian to reach 300 men’s ODIs.
With both India and New Zealand already through to the semi-finals, Sunday’s encounter will determine who will face the Group B leaders South Africa or second-place Australia in the upcoming knockout stage of the tournament.
After winning the toss, Santner announced that Daryl Mitchell will replace Devon Conway. “Looks like a good wicket. We want to apply early pressure and hope it skids on well later. Our goal is to win here, even as we prepare for Lahore; first, we need to accomplish our task here and test ourselves in different conditions,” he mentioned.
India’s captain Rohit Sharma confirmed that pace-bowling all-rounder Harshit Rana has been rested, bringing wrist-spinner Varun Chakravarthy into the team. This means India now features two dynamic spinners, Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav, alongside Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
“I was actually inclined to bat first; I wanted to see what we could achieve upfront, then challenge our bowlers since we’ve chased in both prior matches. Our approach will closely resemble that of our previous matches, trying to maintain consistency,” he stated.
“It’s about forming partnerships in bowling; in both games, we’ve collectively taken 19 wickets. Our spinners have performed well, allowing the seamers to take wickets,” he added.
The match will be held on a black-soil pitch, featuring square boundaries measuring 63m and 71m, while the boundary straight down the ground stands at 76m.
India’s Playing XI against New Zealand: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy.
New Zealand: Rachin Ravindra, Will Young, Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (captain), Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, William O’Rourke.
(With IANS inputs)
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