India have reached a hat-trick of reaching the Champions Trophy finals
Photo : AP
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- India created history in the 2025 CT
- India beat Australia in the semi-final
- India will play either New Zealand and South Africa
The Indian cricket team set multiple world records after reaching the final of the 2025 Champions Trophy final following a memorable victory over Australia by four wickets in the semi-final on Tuesday (March 4) with Virat Kohli winning the Player of the Match (POTM) award.
Earlier in the day, Australia won the toss and chose to bat first. Captain Steve Smith led from the front with a knock of 73 in 96 balls to help the Men in Yellow post a competitive total of 264 on the board. Alex Carey made a quick-fire 57-ball 61. Mohammed Shami was the pick of the Indian bowlers with three wickets while Varun Chakravarthy and Ravindra Jadeja took scalps each.
Kohli made a match-winning knock of 84 in 98 balls and got solid support from Shreyas Iyer (45), Axar Patel (27), KL Rahul (42), and Hardik Pandya (28). The Men in Blue won the match with 11 balls to spare and will play either New Zealand or South Africa in the final on Sunday (March 9).
India Shatter HIstory With Books Another ICC Final Appearance
The victory means India will play their third successive final in the Champions Trophy after winning the title in 2013 after beating England and losing the summit clash to Pakistan in 2017. The Men in Blue are the first team in history to achieve the feat. Previously, Australia played back-to-back finals in 2006 and 2009.
Only Australia, who have played the finals of the Cricket World Cup four times in a row (1996, 1999, 2003, and 2007) have played the summit clash of the same event more than three times in a row. Meanwhile, West Indies also made a hat-trick of final appearances in the same event (1975, 1979, and 1983).
India have also become the first team to play the finals of four back-to-back ICC events after playing the summit clash of the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC), 2023 Cricket World Cup, and 2024 T20 World Cup. This has also made Rohit Sharma the first captain in history to reach the final of all four major ICC event finals.
However, the streak will end later this year as India failed to reach the 2025 WTC final, which will be played between South Africa and Australia at Lord's in June. Intrestingly, no team had played more than two ICC tournament finals in a row before India's dream run.
The Men in Blue are also the first team to reach the final of the Champions Trophy five times having previously played the summit clash in 2000, 2002, 2013, and 2017. West Indies have the second-most appearances in the summit clash of the marquee event three times (1998, 2004, and 2006).
The 2025 Champions Trophy will mark the 14th ICC event final India will play, which is the most for any team. The Men in Blue have played the Cricket World Cup final four times, T20 World Cup summit clash three times, and two World Test Championship (WTC) finals alongside their five outings in the showpiece clash of the Champions Trophy.
Most ICC Events Finals Played By A Team
| Team |
ICC Events Final |
| India |
14 |
| Australia |
13 |
| England |
9 |
| West Indies |
8 |
| Sri Lanka |
7 |
| New Zealand |
6 |
| Pakistan |
6 |
| South Africa |
2 |
Australia will equal this record on 11th June when they play their 14th ICC finals during the 2025 WTC summit clash against South Africa.
Also Read: Virat Kohli Creates History; Becomes First Player In The World To...
India has now also equalled Australia's record for playing the most ICC white-ball events finals (T20 World Cup, Cricket World Cup, and Champions Trophy). Both teams have now reached the summit clash of 12 events.
Having won the 2024 T20 World Cup, the Men in Blue have the chance to win back-to-back ICC titles. This feat has only been achieved by Australia, who have done it twice after winning the 2006 Champions Trophy and 2007 Cricket World Cup while 2023 WTC and World Cup.
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