India and New Zealand preparing for the Champions Trophy 2025 Final (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images)
It is time for the mega finale. It is a big clash between two nations whose rivalry has grown significantly in the recent past. It is the ICC 2025 Champions Trophy Final between India and their nemesis New Zealand on what promises to be a Super Sunday in Dubai.
Will both teams play the extra spinner? Who has the edge in batting? Who is the X-factor for both units? Which are the key match-ups? RG analyses.
Chasing Advantage in Dubai
The toss is expected to play a crucial part in the final in Dubai on Sunday. Although there has not been any dew in the second innings at the venue in the tournament, there is a definite advantage to the team chasing. India has won three of their four matches at the venue batting second, all with comfortable ease. The average total batting first in Dubai in the tournament is just 245. The highest score batting first is Australia’s 264 in the semi-final.
India Has The More Potent Spin Unit
The Indian spin quartet comprising Varun Chakravarthy, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav, have been the most lethal in the tournament with the best bowling average (28.28) and strike rate (35.8). They have also been very restrictive with an economy of just 4.73 – the second-best in the competition.
However, New Zealand are not far behind and the duo of Mitchell Santner and Michael Bracewell have been very impressive in the middle overs. While Santner has bagged seven wickets at an economy of 4.85, the off-spinner has returned with six at an economy of just 4.43. Rachin Ravindra has also been quite tidy with the ball conceding just 4.6 per over while Glenn Phillips has chipped in with a couple of crucial wickets.
While the Indian spinners have exploited the spinner-friendly conditions in Dubai through the tournament, the New Zealand spinners have just played one match at the venue and the remaining on flat tracks in Pakistan and yet managed to return with handsome figures – and that should worry the Indian batters who have not really taken the attack to the opposition spinners in the tournament. India have a strike rate of 80.5 against spin and 96.2 against pace.
Shami vs Henry – The Better New-Ball Pacer?
Matt Henry is the leading wicket-taker of the tournament with 10 dismissals in four matches at an average of 16.7 and strike rate of 18.8. Henry has picked three wickets in the powerplay in four matches in the competition at an economy of 4.63. His wicket-taking propensity stands out in his ODI career and his bowling strike rate of 28.6 is the third-best for a fast bowler in the format’s history (min.150 wickets).
Mohammed Shami is ODI royalty and his bowling strike rate of 25.7 is the best ever in the format’s history – even better than Mitchell Starc’s! Shami has a brilliant record in ICC ODI tournaments with a combined 63 wickets in just 22 matches at a phenomenal average of 14.3 and strike rate of 16.8 with four 4-fers and five fifers! He is the second highest wicket-taker of the 2025 Champions Trophy with eight wickets at an average of 19.87 and economy of 4.96. Shami has bagged three wickets in the powerplay at an economy of just 4.69.
A Clash of Two High-Class Batting Units
India have the most prolific batting order in the tournament with most of their players in top-notch form. While Rohit Sharma will continue to take the attack to the opposition bowlers in the powerplay – he has a strike rate of 107.2 in the first 10 overs in the tournament, Virat Kohli will be key in the middle-order especially in a run-chase.
However, it is Shreyas Iyer who will be India’s X-factor with the bat in the final. Iyer has been in tremendous form since his return to the ODI unit and has scored 376 runs in seven innings (including four fifties) at an average of 53.7 and strike rate of 96.2 in 2025! Iyer is an excellent player of spin and has a scoring rate of 99 against the slower bowlers in ODI cricket. His battle with Santner and Bracewell in the middle overs could decide the outcome of the match.
New Zealand also boast of a formidable batting line-up and in fact the combined batting average of their top 6 is higher than the corresponding average for India in the competition. No team has hit more hundreds than New Zealand (5) with two of them being registered by the flamboyant Rachin Ravindra! The stylish left-hander will be the key in the top-order for New Zealand – he is their best player of spin with a strike rate of 112.4 against the slower bowlers. Tom Latham, Kane Williamson and Will Young have been the other centurions for New Zealand.
Key Match-Ups
1. Rachin Ravindra vs Ravindra Jadeja
2. Rohit Sharma vs Matt Henry
3. Virat Kohli vs Michael Bracewell
4. Shreyas Iyer vs Mitchell Santner
5. Varun Chakravarthy vs Kane Williamson
Nikhil Narain is a die-hard cricket romantic, published author, and has worked for some of the leading digital websites and broadcasters in India and overseas. An alumnus of the London School of Economics, Nikhil's forte is using data and numbers creatively to weave interesting stories and revolutionize the way cricket statistics are generated and analyzed.
