India will be eyeing their third Champions Trophy title when they face New Zealand in the final of the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The game is scheduled to be played on Sunday (March 9) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai.
In-form India will be the favourites to win the upcoming game. The Men in Blue have looked almost unbeatable in the ongoing tournament and are yet to lose a game. They have won all the four games so far, including the one against New Zealand.
India had defeated New Zealand by 44 runs in the group stage and will be fancying their chances of beating the Black Caps once again.
The Indian team is also eyeing history as it can become the first-ever team to win the Champions Trophy thrice. So, as India gears up for the all-important final, we are taking a look at the India Playing 11.
India Playing 11 vs New Zealand – Final, ICC Champions Trophy 2025:
Openers: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill
Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill are set to be the openers in the India Playing 11 for the upcoming game against New Zealand. The onus will be on them to give India a good start in the title-decider.
In the last game against Australia, both the batters had failed to score big. Gill, who scored a century against Bangladesh earlier in the tournament, scored just 8 runs against Australia and will be looking to make amends against New Zealand.
On the other hand, captain Rohit got the start but could not convert it into a big score. He was out for 28 runs in the last game and will look to lead the team from the front in the forthcoming game.
Middle-order batsmen and allrounders: Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja
Virat Kohli will be one of India’s main players in the final. The onus will be on the senior batsman to lead the team’s charge with the bat. Kohli starred with the bat in the semifinal against Australia as he delivered a Player of the Match performance. Kohli scored 84 runs against Australia and will be eyeing another impactful knock.
Shreyas Iyer continued his fine form with the bat in the Champions Trophy by playing another impressive knock in the last game.
He missed his third straight half-century in the ongoing tournament by just 3 runs and will be eyeing another good outing with the bat. Iyer had scored 79 runs against New Zealand during the group stage game and will look to score big once again.
Axar Patel also continued his fine all-round displays by contributing with both bat and ball against Australia. The India allrounder scored 27 runs in addition to picking up the crucial wicket of Glenn Maxwell.
KL Rahul played a good knock as well in the last game. The wicketkeeper-batsman scored an unbeaten 42 off just 34 balls to ensure India crossed the finishing line without too many hiccups. He will certainly retain his spot in India playing 11 vs New Zealand.
Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya are set to be the allrounders apart from Axar in the India Playing 11. Pandya scored a quickfire 28 and picked up 1 wicket against Australia. On the other hand, Jadeja claimed 2 wickets and scored an unbeaten 2.
Bowlers: Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy
India are unlikely to tinker with their bowling lineup after winning the semifinal against Australia. The India Playing 11 is likely to have one frontline pacer and two spinners. With Pandya as the other fast-bowling option, Mohammed Shami is set to lead the pace attack in the India Playing 11 vs New Zealand.
Shami picked up 3 wickets against Australia and will look to make an impact with the ball once again. Varun Chakravarthy also picked up 2 wickets while Kuldeep will look to bounce back after failing to take any wicket against Australia.
