WEBDESK: The India vs Australia semi-final of the Champions Trophy 2025 will take place on Tuesday, at Dubai Stadium on Tuesday.
In a rematch of the 2023 ICC World Cup final where Australia emerged victorious, there is no doubt that India will be looking to get revenge. However, one thing that can’t be questioned is Australia’s ability to rise to the challenge in the biggest games, even without the presence of several key players.
That prompts the question, can India hold their nerve and close out the game against Australia?
Recent form
India: Good luck finding fault with India’s form recent form because there isn’t any. After their win over New Zealand confirming their perfect start to the tournament, they look like the team to beat. Having those games and the time to adjust to the Dubai conditions will also help them in the India vs Australia game as they will be looking to start strong with their spin attack.
Australia: Two of Australia’s three games were washed out with one of them being completely abandoned. But they were on track to an impressive victory against Afghanistan before their match got called off because of the rain. As for the remaining game that they played against England, they managed to chase down a huge total in a thrilling encounter. However, with Matt Short out injured, the Aussie camp will have one question on their mind – who will replace him? All fingers point to James Fraser McGurk.
Player spotlight for India vs Australia
India: Kuldeep Yadav
Given India’s spin bowling options, Kuldeep Yadav is an obvious player to highlight. He’s taken valuable wickets in two of India’s three group stage games and will have all the confidence he needs to target the Australian bowling lineup in the middle phase of the innings. Kuldeep’s 3/40 against Pakistan helped restrict their rivals to 241 all out, which was chased down comfortably by India’s batting lineup.
Australia: Adam Zampa
Australian bowlers will need to step in the India vs Australia game in Dubai. India have a stacked batting lineup that runs deep so it will be interesting to see what playing XI the Aussies go with – do they play three fast bowlers or go with an extra slow bowling option? Either way, the most important bowler in that game will be Adam Zampa. He admitted himself that he hasn’t had his best tournament. So this is his time to shine and guide the Australians to victory.
Squads for India vs Australia game
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy
Australia: Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa
