Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma were seen having a serious conversation just before the Indian team’s net practice under the lights at the ICC Academy in Dubai began. They probably weren’t planning a family trip together following Sunday’s Champions Trophy final. Then what? A few subjects that might have dominated that midfield meeting before the decisive matchup with New Zealand can be identified. They might be Rachin Ravindra, Matt Henry, Mitchell Santner, and Kane Williamson.
First, the final one. The 25-year-old all-rounder has recently made incredible progress in world cricket, raising questions about what he might accomplish over the next ten years. He has amassed five ODI hundreds in the ICC competitions in just 18 months. Big deal? New Zealand cricket legend Kane Williamson has only managed two, while other well-known players have less. Before he rises to take charge of the match, India needs to figure out a way to get rid of him early, just like they did in the last match. It just so happens that he just finished a fantastic century against South Africa in the semifinals. That game’s star player was him.
Henry’s presence might evoke a spooky recollection of that dismal July morning in Manchester in 2019, when the pacer devastated India’s top order, bringing the gloom of the outside weather into the Indian dressing room. India needs to stop him from gaining ground and causing chaos early on, like he did in Manchester that morning and in this league match last Sunday. He must be countered by Rohit and Shubman Gill. Will the Indian squad be worried about the rumours that he has been injured? A simple assumption.
Williamson continues to improve, much like an aged wine. He is playing with more confidence and freedom now that he is not carrying the weight of captaincy. On Sunday, he will be a significant threat to the Indian bowlers, thus it would be crucial for India to get rid of him quickly, either with pace or spin. He is coming off a century in the semifinal, just like Rachin.
Mitchell Santner, the quiet, little-known captain who can subtly control batsmen, will also pose a significant threat. His matchup with Virat Kohli, who has displayed some fragility against good spin, will be very interesting.
India has entered recent matches with two pacers and four spinners, with Varun Chakaravarhty serving as the fourth spinner, thanks to Hardik Pandya’s success with the new ball. They might not mess with the winning combination, and that lineup appears appropriate for the conditions in Dubai.
Every player in New Zealand excels at fielding, which will be another important aspect of the match. It will be a match between the batsmen of India and the fielders of New Zealand, who can perform feats of skill, anticipation, and preparation on the pitch. Few cricket teams in the world can claim to have such abilities and win games solely by fielding. That might be a decisive factor in the end.
The management of the New Zealand team appears to be considering batting first, should they have the choice, mainly to counter Varun Chakravarthy’s spin, although the toss is unlikely to play a significant role if there is no dew in the night. The Indian team would feel more at ease setting or pursuing a goal, therefore the toss won’t be a major factor.
India is unquestionably the more powerful side. However, India has lost more often than they have won in the international events, despite frequently being the superior team in the majority of their matches against New Zealand in the ICC championships.
When: March 9, 14:30 IST, 13:00 Local
Where: International Cricket Stadium in Dubai
Anticipate: A fierce competition between teams with comparable strength, if not star power. India won’t mind batting first or second, even though the toss isn’t really important. It is unlikely to be a game with a high score.
Team Update:
However, there might be a temptation to bench Kuldeep Yadav, who didn’t play well in the previous two games, in favour of a pacer like Arshdeep Singh or Harshit Rana. Nevertheless, Rohit has a reputation for giving the established match winners a long rope.
The probable starting lineup consists of Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakaravarthy, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), and Rohit Sharma (c).
The New Zealand
Devon Conway will likely stay on the bench as the Black Caps, like India, may choose to start with the lineup that helped them advance to the semifinals. They have the appropriate personnel for the situation here because they have four spinners like India: Mitchell Santner, Michael Bracewell, Glenn Philips, and Rachin Ravindra.
Matt Henry has been plagued by injuries since he fielded during the semifinal with a strained shoulder. Nathan Smith or Jacob Duffy will have to fill in if there is a last-minute hiccup, but he has been recuperating nicely and should be available for selection. Given that it would be a stronger matchup against India’s two left-arm spinners, left-arm wrist spin and right-arm mysterious spin, there might be an incentive to pitch Devon Conway. Young should maintain his position, though, considering his recent performance and his performances during the Test tour of India.
Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Kyle Jamieson, William ORourke, Matt Henry/Nathan Smith, and Daryl Mitchell are the likely starting lineup.
Were you aware?
With victories in the CT final in 2000, the World Cup semifinal in 2019, and the WTC final in 2023, New Zealand has a 3-1 record against India in ICC elimination matches. In the 2023 World Cup semifinal, India’s lone victory occurred.
The WTC (2023), ODI World Cup (2023), T20 World Cup (2024), and Champions Trophy (2025) are the four Men’s ICC competitions in which Rohit Sharma is the first captain to ever make it to the final.
In the games against South Africa, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, New Zealand’s spinners have taken a total of 15 wickets at an average of 26 at a strike rate of 31.6. They only took two wickets at an average of 64 and a strike rate of 75 in the match against India.
To become the second-highest run scorer in ODI history, Virat Kohli needs to score an additional 55 runs. In addition, he surpassed Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI tonnes during the 2023 World Cup semifinal match against New Zealand.
In his last six innings against India, Kane Williamson has amassed 333 runs at an average of 83.25 and a strike rate of 79.28, including four half-centuries.
In the CT matches in Dubai, pacers and spinners had each claimed 30 wickets. While spinners have taken 14 and 16 wickets in the two innings, respectively, pacers have had greater success in the first innings (22).
What they stated
“The draw that took place had previously occurred. I’m not sure what to say if people believe that India has an advantage after winning four games. Ultimately, I believe that in order to win a game, you must play quality cricket each and every time you show up. Therefore, all that the critics could say is that we play here. But the draw is that way. Thus, that is the only possible outcome. “It is not that they changed something after coming here and we got an advantage,” said Sitanshu Kotak, the batting coach for India, whose squad has an advantage because they play all of their games in Dubai.
“We have no control over the choice about that. We’re not overly concerned about it. Here in Dubai, India must play all of their games. However, we have played a game here, and we will rapidly learn from that experience as well. At the beginning, there were eight teams present. We are now down to two. Being in this position is always exciting. And from our point of view, this is now just a one-time game. Gary Stead, the head coach of New Zealand, said, “And if we’re good enough to beat India on Sunday, then I’m sure we’ll be very, very happy.”
India
