ICC Champions Trophy 2025: India enters finals, beats Australia by 4 wickets
PTC News Desk: India has enters finals while beating Australia by 4 wickets. Kohli's 84 and Shami's 3-wicket haul lead India to a comfortable win
Virat Kohli delivered a chase masterclass to knock Australia out of the tournament and send India to the final with a four-wicket win in the first semi-final of the Champions Trophy on Tuesday in Dubai.
India finally savoured the sweet taste of revenge of the 2023 ODI World Cup heartbreak, which now became a distant memory as India relished its four-wicket victory in the semi-final.
By chasing down a competitive 265-run target, India toppled the record by completing its highest-successful run chase against Australia in an ICC event, bettering the previous best chase of 261 in the 2011 World Cup quarter-final.
India began its pursuit of the 265-run target with a touch of caution. Shubman Gill looked jittery in his approach, while India's captain, Rohit Sharma, remained undaunted and stuck to his early blitzkrieg approach.
In his policy of playing fearless cricket, Rohit received his first lifelines when Cooper Connolly dropped a sitter. He received a second chance after Marnus Labuschagne sprinted towards the ball and got hold of it but eventually fluffed it as he landed on the ground.
With India showing signs of nerves getting the better of them, Australia saw the opening and capitalised on the opportunity. Ben Dwarshuis drew the first blood with a delivery angling into the right-handed star. Gill tried to dab it to third man and dragged the ball straight into the stumps.
- ANI
