Not Virat Kohli! New Zealand Head Coach Identifies 33-Year-Old As 'Big Threat' Ahead Of Champions Trophy Final
Photo : AP
India are all set to take on New Zealand in a blockbuster encounter at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday (November 9). The man who India will have their hopes on is Virat Kohli, who has a knack of always delivering the goods in the biggest games. He comes into the final in red-hot form, having scored a match-winning 84 run-knock in the semi-final. However, New Zealand head coach Gary Stead has not identified Kohli, but mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy as a big threat for their side in the summit clash.
In the last match of the Group stage between India and New Zealand, Varun Chakravarthy stole the spotlight as he finished with a five-wicket haul. The New Zealand batters found it difficult to pick him and score runs against him.
Speaking to the press ahead of the final, Gary Stead called Varun Chakravarthy a class bowler who would be a big threat for them in the final. He also revealed that New Zealand is also brainstorming as to how they could score runs against him.
“We certainly expect him to play after getting 5/42 against us in the last game. He’s a class bowler and showed his skills against us last time and he’s a big threat in the game. So we’ll be putting our thinking caps on around how we nullify that and how we can still score runs against him," Stead said.
Gary Stead Speaks On India's 'Dubai Advantage'
There has been a lo of criticism coming in from all quarters regarding India's schedule for the Champions Trophy 2025, arguing that playing all their matches in Dubai gives the Men in Blue an unfair advantage. Ahead of the final, Gary Stead said that scheduling is something out of their hands. However, he said that playing a game there before has helped them learn.
"The decision around that’s (the schedule) out of our hands, so it’s not something we worry about too much. India have got to play all their games here in Dubai, but we have had a game here and we’ll learn very quickly from that experience," he said.
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