Ricky Ponting Credits India's All Rounders As Game Changers In Champions Trophy 2025 Victory

March 14, 2025: Ricky Ponting has praised India's all-rounders as the driving force behind their success in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, highlighting their contribution alongside the experience of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Ponting, in an interview with ICC Review, said, "Their all-rounders right through the tournament were outstanding."

The legendary Australian cricketer added that the depth in India's squad, especially the presence of all-rounders, was crucial to their dominance. "Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Hardik Pandya were all outstanding. I said at the start of the tournament I thought India would be really hard to beat because of their overall balance and because of that mix of youth and experience," he said.

India's winning campaign saw three all-rounders—Jadeja, Patel, and Pandya—starting in all five of their matches, giving the team not only a deep batting line-up but also multiple bowling options. Ponting further elaborated on the team’s balance, noting, "When you've got Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, who they used up the order on a number of occasions for that left-handed option, and with Jadeja there as well, they were a very well-balanced team."

While praising their all-round strength, Ponting acknowledged that India may have appeared a little light on fast bowling. However, he noted that the team’s comprehensive balance, led by their spin-heavy attack, proved sufficient to win the tournament. "Hardik Pandya's role becomes really important to be able to bowl with a new ball and get through some overs early... which made it a little bit easier for the spinners in the backend of their Powerplay," he added.

Ponting also singled out Axar Patel for special mention. "Axar Patel is the other one that I think needs a lot of credit for this tournament. His bowling was as consistent and rock solid as you'd ever see," said Ponting, highlighting Patel’s steady contributions with both bat and ball. "Just some of those little cameos he played with the bat, coming in earlier and steadying the ship, just made life a little easier for the lower order," he concluded.

India’s all-round strength and balanced approach were key to their success, and Ponting believes this combination of youth and experience was central to their title-winning campaign.