The Men in Blue will face Australia in the semifinal encounter in Dubai.
India registered another win in the Champions Trophy 2025, defeating New Zealand by 44 runs in their final league-stage fixture. Consequently, they ended at the top of the points table, with three wins in as many games. The Men in Blue will face Australia in the semifinal encounter in Dubai.
Australia were also consistent in the league stage, not losing any game. India have often failed to get past Australia in the knockout phase of ICC tournaments, including the biggest heartbreak in 2023. While India didn’t lose any fixture in the league stage, they were not flawless and have a few concerns leading into the semifinal.
We look at three worries for India heading into the Champions Trophy 2025 semifinal.
Generally, KL Rahul is a safe wicketkeeper who doesn’t make too many mistakes behind the sticks. However, he has been sloppy throughout this Champions Trophy and things looked at sea in the latest contest against New Zealand. He didn’t collect the ball cleanly and dropped a few catches with the gloves.
Fortunately, his errors didn’t cost the team the match, but India would want him to be tighter in the remaining tournament. Good sides don’t give too many chances, so it’s necessary to pounce on every minor to major opportunity. The wicketkeepers will play a key role in Dubai, as spinners will wreak havoc, so KL will have his task cut out.
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Spencer Johnson and Ben Dwarshuis will open the attack for Australia and pose a massive threat to India’s top order. As visible in the last game, the pacers got some early movement and troubled India batters. Further, Indian batters have their issues against left-arm pacers, even though they have done well lately.
If there’s any movement, Johnson and Dwarshuis can exploit it and their left-arm angle will make life arduous for batters. A stable start from the top is vital in such games, but the job won’t be easy for India. However, batting will become slightly easier if they weather the early storm.
Australia have one of the most skilled middle order against spinners with Steve Smith, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey, and Glenn Maxwell capable of handling them well. India’s best bet to win this game is to repeat the same they did against New Zealand. They will need their spinners to step up again and do the heavy lifting with the ball.
However, if there’s any team skilled to take them down, it’s Australia. They have experienced players who can manoeuvre the fields and hit boundaries. The winner of this battle will likely proceed to the final as well.
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