"India Outplayed Us, They Deserved the Win": Steve Smith Shuts Down Venue Advantage Debate
Dubai [UAE], March 5: Australia captain Steve Smith has dismissed claims that India had an unfair advantage by playing all their matches in Dubai during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, following his team’s four-wicket loss in the semifinal on Tuesday.
While discussions around India’s fixed venue advantage have been a hot topic among former cricketers and fans, Smith believes India simply outplayed Australia and deserved their spot in the final.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Smith played down any controversy, saying the conditions suited India, but their performance was the key reason for their victory.
“Yeah, look, I’m not buying into it. I think it is what it is. India obviously played some really good cricket here. The surface kind of suits their style with the spinners that they’ve got and the seamers that they have at their disposal for a wicket like that. They played well, they outplayed us, and they deserve the victory.”
His statement aligns with India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir, who also dismissed the idea that playing all matches in Dubai gave his team an undue advantage.
Australia’s innings started positively after winning the toss. Travis Head (39 off 33 balls) gave them momentum, and at one stage, a total near 300 looked possible. However, India’s bowlers consistently broke partnerships, restricting Australia to 264 in 49.3 overs.
Smith acknowledged that failing to convert key stands into big partnerships ultimately cost them 30-40 extra runs.
“Yeah, I think the toss was the right decision. We had our opportunities to post something above 300, but we lost wickets at crucial stages. If we had extended one of those partnerships, we could have gotten up to 290-300 and put a bit of pressure on the scoreboard.”
He also pointed out that slow and worn-out pitches in Dubai made batting challenging, preventing teams from crossing the 300-run mark in the tournament.
“The square block as a whole has seen a lot of cricket over the last couple of months. We can see it’s pretty tired, and that’s probably why we haven’t seen a score above 300 in this tournament here.”
Defending 265, Australia dropped crucial chances, including two early lifelines for Rohit Sharma and a missed opportunity by Glenn Maxwell to dismiss Virat Kohli in the 26th over.
Reflecting on these moments, Smith admitted that dropping key catches hurt their chances of applying pressure on India.
“We dropped a couple of chances, and when you’re trying to squeeze the game and build pressure, you need to take those. No one means to drop a catch, it’s part of the game, but those moments cost us.”
With this victory, India has secured a spot in the Champions Trophy final, keeping their unbeaten run intact. While Australia exits the tournament, they will reflect on their missed opportunities and underwhelming performance in crucial moments.
India will now face the winner of the second semifinal, aiming to clinch another ICC trophy and cement their dominance in world cricket.
India vs Australia, Champions Trophy 2025, Steve Smith, Virat Kohli, Gautam Gambhir, ICC Champions Trophy, Cricket News, Team India, Australian Cricket, Rohit Sharma, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell
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