ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Team India accused of having 'Dubai' advantage
Published - 18 Feb 2025, 02:00 PM | Updated - 18 Feb 2025, 11:35 PM
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Former batter and cricket analyst Aakash Chopra has opened up about the advantage the India National Cricket Team holds in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. He believes that the Men in Blue will have a unique edge in the tournament as compared to others as they will play all their matches in Dubai.
With all of India’s matches scheduled at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Rohit Sharma and his team will have a great opportunity to practice and fine-tune their strategies in the same conditions. And Aakash Chopra believes that this could be a major factor in the Men in Blue’s success in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Aakash Chopra reveals India’s unique advantage in ICC Champions Trophy 2025
The commentator has noted that the Men in Blue will get used to Dubai’s conditions, but the other teams will not have that luxury, and it will be a huge advantage for the T20 World Cup winners to take an early lead in the tournament.
Notably, the semifinals and final will also be held in Dubai if the Men in Blue qualify, and then again familiarity will work in favor of the team.
Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel, “Only we know about Dubai; the opposing team has no idea. This thing was about Pakistan as they are playing in home conditions. So, whoever goes there won't know the pitches that well. Similarly, everyone will have to come to Dubai.”
He added, “We are the only ones who will play three matches on the same ground and the same square, and that has to be our strength. We will also practice in identical conditions. There is a week's gap after the second match. So, we will get to know the conditions a little better.”
No team looks close to the batting depth: Aakash Chopra
Meanwhile, Aakash Chopra highlighted the Men in Blue's strong batting lineup ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. He pointed out the depth, experience, and pedigree of the batting order, which he believes is the strongest in the tournament. He hails India’s depth in the batting.
The cricket pundit further explained, “The pedigree, experience, and depth in our batting. From whichever point of view you might see, you will find that India's batting is powerful. If we just do man-to-man marking and go with the pedigree, India has the strongest batting in this tournament. No team looks close.
Just think about it—Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and then there is Rishabh Pant's possibility, Hardik Pandya, and Axar Patel batting brilliantly these days, and you have batting till Ravindra Jadeja. Jaddu comes at No. 8.”
Aakash Chopra highlights recent success in the ICC events
In the end, Chopra has emphasized that the Rohit Sharma-led team's recent success in the ICC events will also boost the players’ confidence in the upcoming prestigious tournament, where they will begin the campaign against Bangladesh on February 20 in Dubai.
Notably, India had made it to the semifinals of the 2022 T20 World Cup, the finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup, and the ICC World Test Championship before winning the 2024 T20 World Cup.
