Champions Trophy: Shubman Gill Calls India’s Batting Line-Up The ‘Best’ Ahead Of Final Against NZ

March 9, 2025: Ahead of the highly anticipated ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final against New Zealand on Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Team India’s vice-captain Shubman Gill expressed his excitement and confidence in his team’s batting line-up, calling it the “best” he has ever been a part of in his career.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Gill praised the presence of seasoned players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, emphasizing the strength and depth of India’s batting order. “I think this is the best batting lineup that I have been part of personally. Rohit and Virat are all-time one-day greats in the world. Rohit is one of the best openers in white-ball cricket, and Virat is one of the best ODI batsmen ever,” Gill said.

Gill also highlighted how the middle order, featuring in-form players like Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, and Ravindra Jadeja, has bolstered the team’s batting unit. He emphasized that the depth in the batting line-up allows the top-order to play with more freedom. “In case of batting, we have Shreyas in such good form, KL, Hardik, Jaddu. So, I think the depth in our batting makes it easier for the upper batsmen. We can play more freely from the top because we have so much depth,” he added.

Reflecting on the challenges faced by India in the past, Gill admitted that the lack of batting depth had previously put extra pressure on the top-order. However, with the current squad, that issue has been addressed, enabling the team to play with more confidence and freedom. “I think this is one thing in which we struggled a little in the beginning. There was not enough depth in batting. So, there was a little more pressure on the batsmen to score long. But I think the depth in batting allows us to play a little more freely,” he explained.

As India prepares for a showdown with New Zealand, they are looking to avenge their previous losses in ICC tournaments, including the 2019 World Cup semifinal and the 2021 World Test Championship final. India’s dominant performance in the tournament so far has been marked by an undefeated run, but they will need to overcome a solid Kiwi team led by captain Mitchell Santner.

In their last meeting, India defeated New Zealand by 44 runs, posting 249 runs from their 50 overs and restricting New Zealand to 205 all out. The match also saw a standout performance by India’s spinners, particularly Varun Chakravarthy, who claimed 5/42, while Matt Henry starred with the ball for New Zealand, taking 5/42 in return.

As the two teams prepare for what promises to be a thrilling final, all eyes will be on how India’s potent batting line-up, led by Gill, Kohli, and Rohit, counters the threat posed by New Zealand’s bowlers, especially in the pressure-filled final.

Squads:

India Squad:
Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh.

New Zealand Squad:
Will Young, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Tom Latham (w), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, William O’Rourke, Daryl Mitchell, Nathan Smith, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy.