India defeated New Zealand to win the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 by 4 wickets, claiming their third title. They successfully chased down a target of 251 in Dubai, maintaining an unbeaten record throughout the tournament and adding another ICC trophy to their collection.
India’s innings began powerfully with captain Rohit Sharma leading the charge. He and his partner built a 105-run opening partnership, with Rohit scoring 69 off 63 balls. Despite favorable spin conditions, both teams initially targeted pace bowlers. Rohit’s aggressive start made the run chase seem easy.
New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner introduced spin early, but India’s openers maintained a good run rate. India reached 106 runs by the 19th over, holding a strong position before New Zealand fought back.
Santner dismissed Shubman Gill with a brilliant catch by Glenn Phillips, and Michael Bracewell quickly followed up by taking Virat Kohli’s wicket. These quick wickets put pressure back on India, as New Zealand’s spinners tightened their control. Rohit Sharma and Shreyas Iyer then focused on stabilizing the innings.
After a period of quiet play, Rohit Sharma was eventually stumped off Rachin Ravindra’s bowling. At 122/3, the match was delicately balanced, requiring another strong partnership for India.
Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer then combined cautious play with aggressive shots to regain momentum. Iyer benefited from a dropped catch early in his innings.
Iyer and Patel put together a crucial 62-run partnership, although Iyer was dropped again. Eventually, Iyer was dismissed by Rachin Ravindra. KL Rahul then joined Axar Patel, hitting a quick six to relieve pressure. However, Patel was soon out, caught at long-off.
With 48 runs needed off 48 balls, the final remained tense. KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya then scored timely boundaries to keep India on track. Pandya was dismissed with 11 runs still needed, but smart batting from Jadeja and Rahul ensured India reached the target, overcoming a strong challenge from New Zealand.
Earlier, New Zealand scored a competitive total thanks to a resilient effort with the bat. Daryl Mitchell top-scored with 63 off 101 balls, countering India’s strong spin attack. India’s spinners had earlier shifted the game’s momentum after New Zealand’s fast start.
Rachin Ravindra had given New Zealand an aggressive start, hitting impressive shots against the pacers. However, India’s spinners, Varun Chakaravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav, then took key wickets to bring India back into the match. Kuldeep Yadav’s crucial wickets of Ravindra and Kane Williamson shifted the momentum significantly.
From 75/3, New Zealand adopted a more cautious approach. Tom Latham and Daryl Mitchell built a slow partnership before Latham was dismissed. Mitchell then partnered with Glenn Phillips, but both batsmen were dropped catches. Phillips was eventually dismissed by Chakaravarthy.
Mitchell reached his half-century and accelerated the scoring with Michael Bracewell. Their partnership took New Zealand past 200, and Bracewell’s aggressive batting in the final overs helped them reach a total of 251/7.
Brief Scores: New Zealand 251/7 (Daryl Mitchell 63, Michael Bracewell 53*; Varun Chakaravarthy 2-45, Kuldeep Yadav 2-40) lost to India 254/6 (Rohit Sharma 76, Shreyas Iyer 48) by 4 wickets
