SPINNER Varun Chakravarthy took 5-42 as India defeated New Zealand by 44 runs on Sunday, securing a semi-final spot against Australia in the Champions Trophy.
India won all three of their group-stage matches to finish at the top of Group A and will play the first semi-final of the tournament in Dubai on Tuesday.
“Important to finish on a high,” India captain Rohit Sharma said. “New Zealand are a good team who are playing some good cricket. Very important to get a good result, we played a perfect game.”
New Zealand, who finished second in Group A, will face South Africa, the Group B winners, in the second semi-final in Lahore on Wednesday.
India have played all their matches in Dubai after declining to travel to host nation Pakistan due to security concerns.
Rohit’s team had lost the 2023 ODI World Cup final to Australia in Ahmedabad.
“Australia has a rich history of playing ICC tournaments well, but it is about us and what we want to do well on that particular day,” said Rohit. “It will be a great contest, looking forward to that. Hopefully, we can stitch one towards us.”
Australia and South Africa had to travel to Dubai from Pakistan without knowing if Read More….