'Australia has a rich history of...' - Rohit Sharma admits fear ahead of CT 2025 semi-final clash

Rohit Sharma's India National Cricket Team and Mitchell Santner's New Zealand National Cricket Team locked horns with each other in the final group stage match of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 on Sunday, March 2.

India National Cricket Team beat the New Zealand National Cricket Team at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in a compressive manner by 44 runs to finish their campaign on a high.

Also Read: Indian team member leaves for home in the middle of CT 2025 clash vs NZ

We have the quality in our bowling to defend that total - Rohit Sharma

Losing the toss and batting first, India registered a score of 249 for 9, thanks to a sensational batting performance from Shreyas Iyer (79 runs off 98 balls).

While defending the total, the Indian bowlers were troubled by the Kiwi star Kane Williamson but they kept picking wickets at regular intervals and bowled out the opposition in 45.3 overs for 205 runs..

Speaking after the match, India skipper Rohit Sharma expressed his delight over finishing the campaign without losing a match. He lauded New Zealand as a good side and was happy that his team played perfect cricket against them. Further, Rohit Sharma talked about the partnership between Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel and stated:

"Important to finish on a high. NZ are a good team who are playing some good cricket. Very important to get a good result, we played a perfect game.

"It was important at that stage (after being 30/3) to build a partnership, and I thought we got to a good total. We have the quality in our bowling to defend that total."

He has something different about him - Rohit Sharma on Varun Chakravarthy

Rohit Sharma was mighty impressed with the performance of mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, who bagged a fifer. He said:

"(On Chakravarthy) He has something different about him, so wanted to try and see what he can offer. We haven't thought much about the next game, but good headache to have. Critical to possibly win every game and doing everything right in a short tournament. Important to correct mistakes quickly, and that's where we know if your team is going up or going down."

In the end, Rohit Sharma spoke about India's semi-final opponents, Australia, and said that they have a rich history of doing well in ICC competitions. He stated:

"It will be a good game, Australia has a rich history of playing ICC tournaments well, but is is about us and what we want to do well on that particular day. It will be a great contest, looking forward to that."

How Did India Perform in the Previous ODI Match Against New Zealand?

India delivered a flawless performance against New Zealand in the previous ODI match during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 semi-final to bag a dominant 70-run victory.

While batting first, India decimated New Zealand bowlers to register a record-breaking 397/4 total. Rohit Sharma put New Zealand on the back foot early with his aggressive innings (47 off 29), and Shubman Gill also played a great knock of 80* runs.

However, it was Virat Kohli’s 117-run innings that stole the show, making him the first batter in history to score 50 ODI centuries. The star middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer played a fiery knock of 105 runs off 70 balls to accelerate India’s innings, while KL Rahul’s quick 39* runs in the final few overs ensured India ended up with a massive total.

While defending the total, the veteran pacer Mohammed Shami dismantled New Zealand’s batting unit with his magical seven-wicket haul (7/57).

He struck in his initial overs to remove Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra. The pacer returned later to dismiss Kane Williamson and Tom Latham in quick succession before removing Daryl Mitchell, Tim Southee, and Lockie Ferguson in the last 5 overs to complete a 7-fer.

Shami was provided with key support from Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav as India went on to clinch a stunning victory. For New Zealand, Daryl Mitchell played a valiant knock of 134 runs but his innings went in vain.