Ahead of India's final ICC Champions Trophy 2025 group-stage match against New Zealand, many fans surprisingly hoped for an Indian loss ĄĒ all to avoid a high-stakes semi-final clash with Australia. However, the Men in Blue had other plans. On March 2, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, India defended their target of 249 by bowling out the Kiwis for 205 in 45.3 overs, securing a convincing 44-run victory.
With this win, the semi-final lineup for this year's Champions Trophy is set. From Group B, Australia and South Africa advanced, while India and New Zealand qualified from Group A.
The victory for the Rohit Sharma-led side also meant they will face Aussies in the semi-final in Dubai, while New Zealand, finishing second in their group, will head to Lahore to take on South Africa.?
Had the Kiwis defeated India, they would have topped Group A and faced Australia, leaving India to clash with South Africa ĄĒ a scenario many fans preferred. But India's dominant performance ensured they finished at the top of their group, setting up a much-anticipated showdown with the Aussies in the first semi-final in Dubai on March 4, while New Zealand will fly to Lahore to take on South Africa on March 5.
Despite their hopes for a different path, fans took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to react ĄĒ many recalling the heartbreak of India's 2023 ODI World Cup final loss against Australia, largely due to Travis Head's stunning performance.
One fan wrote, "Ind vs Aus in semis... Bye."
Another said, "Here we go again (crying emoji)."
One hopeful supporter added, "WC 23 Revenge is ON!"?
India squad: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul(w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh?
Australia squad: Matthew Short, Travis Head, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Steven Smith(c), Josh Inglis(w), Aaron Hardie, Glenn Maxwell, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Adam Zampa, Tanveer Sangha, Nathan Ellis, Spencer Johnson, Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey
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