In the 2025 Champions Trophy, India faced New Zealand, securing a 44-run victory as Varun Chakravarthy took five wickets despite a low target of 250. A fielding blunder by Chakravarthy, where he missed a catch leading to four runs, went viral, leaving teammates, including Hardik Pandya and Virat Kohli, shocked. New Zealand’s Matt Henry excelled with 5-42, while India struggled, with Shreyas Iyer scoring 79 and Hardik Pandya 45. Despite a strong bowling performance, India ended with 249/9 in the final Group A match at the Dubai International Stadium.
The Champions Trophy 2025 match between India and New Zealand featured Varun Chakravarthy showcasing his talent. The mystery spinner claimed five wickets, leading India to a 44-run victory over New Zealand, despite setting a modest target of 250 runs. However, one of his fielding blunders went viral when he failed to stop a ball, resulting in a boundary. This incident occurred in the third over of the game when Hardik Pandya bowled to Will Young. The Kiwi player sent the ball towards mid-on; Varun sprinted for the catch, missed it, and the ball struck his leg, rolling past the boundary line. Hardik buried his face in his hands, while teammates like Virat Kohli looked on in disbelief.
Varun Chakravarthy kya kar rahe ho.. 4 runs gift.#INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/brTiOaDnec
— Amit (@amit25joshi) March 2, 2025
Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja reaction on Varun Chakravarthy miss fielding. pic.twitter.com/cl84xxNviQ
— Vikas Yadav (@VikasYadav66200) March 2, 2025
In the earlier stages, seamer Matt Henry once again rose to the occasion, picking 5 wickets for 42 runs, marking his third five-wicket haul in One Day Internationals, as New Zealand restricted India to 249 runs for nine wickets in the final Group A match of the 2025 Champions Trophy at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. After winning the toss and opting to bowl, New Zealand capitalized on the conditions provided by the pitch, keeping a tight rein on the Indian batsmen. Shreyas Iyer superbly anchored the innings, scoring 79 runs, aided by Axar Patel, who contributed a solid 42. Despite New Zealand’s impressive bowling towards the end, Hardik Pandya’s run-a-ball 45 ensured India managed a competitive total.
With significant assistance for fast bowlers, Henry and Kyle Jamieson made effective use of the conditions, challenging the Indian batsmen with seam and swing. Although Rohit Sharma attacked Henry for boundaries, the seamer retaliated by trapping Shubman Gill leg before wicket with a beautiful inswinger for just two runs.
Jamieson quickly followed suit when Rohit mistimed a pull shot and was caught at midwicket for just 15. Virat Kohli got off to a shaky start with two edged boundaries in his 300th ODI before he fell for 11, when he cut one firmly off Henry, leading to a stunning catch by Glenn Phillips at backward point, leaving everyone astonished, while India concluded the first power-play at 37 runs for three wickets.
Amidst turning conditions for New Zealand’s spinners, India went 51 balls without a boundary until Axar swept a delivery from Mitchell Santner in the 16th over. Iyer then targeted William O’Rourke, hitting three boundaries – two pulled and one driven over extra cover.
As Iyer secured his 22nd ODI half-century off 75 balls, Axar displayed his prowess against Michael Bracewell’s off-spin, striking two fours before sending one over extra covers for a six. The partnership of 98 runs ended when Axar attempted to pull a delivery from Rachin Ravindra down the leg side; a top edge was caught by backward square leg, and he departed for 42.
KL Rahul got off the mark with a lofted four off Ravindra, while Iyer perfectly timed his shots, hitting a six off the spinner and O’Rourke. However, in the 37th over, a short ball resulted in Iyer’s dismissal as he was caught off a top edge while attempting to pull O’Rourke.
Three overs later, Rahul fell for 23 while chasing a delivery from Santner outside his off stump, thick-edging it behind to Tom Latham. Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja ignited the slog overs phase, striking Bracewell for a six and a four, with Hardik pulling O’Rourke for another boundary.
Hardik maintained his aggression, striking a powerful shot for four off Henry, who later found Jadeja nicking one to backward point, where Kane Williamson completed a spectacular one-handed catch. New Zealand’s bowlers executed their lengths perfectly, managing to keep Hardik relatively quiet until he unleashed a flurry of shots in the 49th over.
He sliced and lofted Jamieson for consecutive fours, before pulling the pacer over long-on for a six, amassing 15 runs off the penultimate over. However, Henry dismissed both Hardik and Mohammed Shami in the final over to secure a five-wicket haul, leaving India with a total just shy of 250 runs.
Brief scores: India 249/9 in 50 overs (Shreyas Iyer 79, Hardik Pandya 45; Matt Henry 5-42) against New Zealand.
With IANS inputs
Topics mentioned in this article