By Abhinav Muley (2024)
A week has passed since the conclusion of the Champions Trophy 2025. Ecstasy and excitement among the Indian fans have settled down and fans of other teams have also come to terms with the defeats, anguish, and heartbreak. This brief window between a major world event and the IPL serves as the ideal time to look back at how the top ODI-playing nations fared in the tournament.
The Champions’ Trophy returned after eight long years following its last edition in 2017. The official announcement for the same strangely came around in December 2024, just two months prior to its scheduled start in February 2025. When the topic involved requires the resolution of the conflict between India and Pakistan, funny things are bound to happen. Initially, Pakistan had exclusively received hosting rights for the tournament. However, given the ‘strong and healthy’ Indo-Pak relations, the Indian government and the BCCI rejected the idea of India playing in Pakistan. Eventually, the BCCI vetoed its way out, converting Pakistan’s solo hosting right into a hybrid affair with the UAE, even forcing Pakistan, the host nation, to travel to the UAE for a match against India. Another reason for the event making the headlines before its commencement was the shabby renovation work at the Karachi National Stadium. Just before the tournament, a few videos surfaced online, showing people jumping their way into the stadium without any entry access, a perfect display of Pakistan’s ‘impeccable’ measures to ensure player safety. Despite numerous obstacles, the organizational aspect of the tournament got sorted eventually and cricket finally took center stage.
The tournament set off with some one-sided clashes: New Zealand thrashed Pakistan in the tournament opener, followed by a dominant India cruising past Bangladesh. Up next was the clash between two arch-rivals, Australia and England, where the Aussies managed to steamroll England by chasing a record-breaking 355 runs, with Josh Inglis and Alex Carey being the torchbearers in Australia’s chase. Next in line was the most hyped marquee clash of every ICC tournament, India versus Pakistan. Pakistan, like in the recent past, succumbed to the pressure and was toyed with by India. Virat Kohli’s unbeaten century along with Kuldeep Yadav’s magic with the ball turned out to be stumbling blocks for Pakistan. Back-to-back losses left Pakistan virtually knocked out within the first four days of an ICC tournament on home soil — one they had waited 29 long years to host. New Zealand breezed past Bangladesh on the following day, which was the final nail in the coffin for both Pakistan and Bangladesh, confirming the entries of India and New Zealand into the semifinals. Thereafter, a rain-affected Pak – Bangladesh dead rubber meant that both teams ended their campaigns with one point each.
While all the action in one group was done and dusted, the spotlight shifted to the other where chaos was set to unfold. In the coming days, the table toppers of group B, South Africa, and Australia, were set to face each other. But thanks to nature’s intervention, famously referred to as ‘Qudrat ka Nizam’ in Pakistan, the match was washed out. Both the teams shared one point each, turning the upcoming match between Afghanistan and England into a do-or-die contest. The high-octane fixture lived up to the expectations and went right down to the wire. Afghanistan made it over the line by the barest of margins, thanks to Ibrahim Zadran’s glorious batting display backed by Azmatullah Omrzai’s deceptive brilliance with the ball. This loss knocked England out of the tournament, and consequently, Jos Buttler relinquished his captaincy.
Now, Australia, South Africa, and Afghanistan, three top-quality sides, were all set to lock horns and compete over two semifinal spots. As if the ongoing drama was not enough, rain once again played spoilsport resulting in a washed-out match between Australia and Afghanistan. The Aussies qualified for the semifinals, whereas the Afghans’ hopes for qualification were now at the mercy of Team England. South Africa didn’t take long to crush these hopes and bulldozed over the England side, making their way into the semifinals. India registered an emphatic victory over the Kiwis (New Zealand), to conclude proceedings of the group stages. With the most anticipated sides deservedly making it to the semifinals, things were about to get heated as the tournament moved forward.
The knockouts were set off with the Kiwis taking on the Proteas (South Africa) and the Aussies facing India. With a highly inexperienced bowling line-up, Australia failed to make the cut against India and was knocked out. Yet another match where Kohli lived up to his tag of ‘The Chase Master’ and took India over the line. The Proteas, often labeled as ‘chokers’ due to their history of defeats in ICC knockout matches, faced yet another semifinal loss as New Zealand, powered by twin centuries from Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra, swept them aside.
After nearly three weeks of captivating high-intensity cricket, the two best teams reached the final frontier, both equally capable and driven by an unwavering hunger to lift the trophy. It was a showdown between India’s formidable bowling unit, arguably the best in the tournament, and New Zealand, renowned for their exceptional fielding and a balanced team framework. The stage was set and the teams were all set to have a go at each other. Rohit Sharma lost the toss yet again(his 12th consecutive loss) and the Kiwis elected to bat first. Rachin Ravindra powered the New Zealand side off to a flier but as expected, the Indian spin quartet spun their webs and trapped the Kiwi batsmen, who were rendered helpless and struggled to break free. Their innings limped to a barely competitive score of 251. ‘Cometh the hour, cometh the captain’, as Rohit Sharma blistered away with some explosive batting in the powerplay, taking India off to a blazing start. Things seemed pretty straightforward for India at 105 for no loss, when an airborne Glenn Phillips pulled off a stunner to get rid of Shubman Gill. Shortly after, both Kohli and Rohit made their way back to the pavilion.
Indian supporters were stunned into silence, for they had seen this script before—the 2023 World Cup final. In 2023 too, India had dominated the entire tournament, only to lose to the Aussies in the finals, a match that had scarred most, if not all the Indian fans. The situation was tense and a sense of fear gripped the fans, haunted by the possibility that history might repeat itself. The Kiwis continued to strike with the ball at regular intervals as this game turned into a back-and-forth contest, with India running away with the game for the majority of the time and New Zealand catching up every once in a while. Some sensible batting by the likes of Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Axar Patel, made sure that India stayed ahead in the game and soon the situation reached ‘2 runs required off 7 balls’. Jadeja was on strike, he pulled the ball and it raced to the fence like a tracer bullet. The crowd erupted as celebrations began in the Indian camp, it was all heartbreak and tears for the Kiwis. On one hand, India had completed their redemption arc and finally added a 50-over trophy in their cabinet, on the other, the Kiwis yet again stood agonizingly short of the final summit and went home empty-handed.
Just like every other ICC event is recalled by the name of the winning team, this too will be remembered as the ‘Champions Trophy 2025, which India won’. But is that all there was to this event? Surely not. A major sporting event is defined not only by its winners but also by other instances. Instances of sheer brilliance, sportsmanship, stories of downfalls and comebacks and also for some off-field stuff. Before the memories of this tournament fade away, let us shed light on some of these event-defining instances of this tournament.
Starting off with a story that stands out above others – The Rise of Afghanistan Cricket. As a nation, these are dark times for Afghanistan. With cricket being a beacon of hope and a rare source of joy for the people, the Afghanistan team with their on-field brilliance have made sure that their supporters can keep their heads held high. Their victories against top tier teams like England and Pakistan, along with close contests against the mighty Aussies, highlight their phenomenal improvement over the past three years. One thing is evident — whenever Team Afghanistan takes the field, they give it their all. This sense of responsibility and commitment has led to them being regarded as the second-best whiteball team in Asia. While Afghanistan seems to be on the ascent, Pakistan cricket is in the middle of a nosedive. They have qualified for the knockouts just once in the last six ICC tournaments and have lost to teams like Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, and the USA during this period (taking nothing away from these teams, but one doesn’t expect Pakistan to lose to them). One may attribute this string of failures to the lack of proper team selection, but this problem seems to be never-ending at this point as both the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) and selectors appear to be clueless and ignorant. At this rate, Pakistan might reach depths that they wouldn’t have imagined in their wildest dreams. A turnaround seems unlikely unless a capable administrator steps in to fix Pakistan’s cricketing woes. Whether this happens or not, only time will tell.
Moving on from the dungeons to the skies, this was the tournament of the ‘flying Kiwis’. Each and every member of the New Zealand team, especially the superman Glenn Phillips put up an exemplary display of their fielding prowess. Although their fielding did let them down in the finals, they still set the ground, rather than the air ablaze with their fielding skills. This tournament also marked the end of some of the most glorious ODI careers, with Temba Bavuma and Steve Smith calling it quits in the ODI format, leaving the fans with a sense of admiration for their remarkable contributions to the game.
Finally, it is necessary to commend the way the Indian team carried themselves throughout the tournament. There was no singular star in the team, all eleven were equally capable and took the onus to get the team over the line at every opportunity that they got. India set up a clinic in Dubai and kept churning out victories after victories, eventually proving why they deserved to lift the trophy. As an Indian fan, surviving in the Gautam Gambhir era has been tough considering the losses prior to this Champions’ Trophy, but all’s well that ends well.
Before moving on from this tournament, it’s important to address a question that remains unanswered. Why the special treatment for one particular team? The Indian team has enjoyed the luxury of playing at the same venue for the past two events in a row now, first in the T20 World Cup 2024 and now in the Champions’ Trophy. Indeed India has been the economic epicentre and a superpower in the sport thanks to IPL. But its influence over ICC is pretty evident now. Undoubtedly, India playing in UAE was primarily a political decision, but a fairer approach from ICC would’ve been to make India travel to different venues like Sharjah or Abu Dhabi, just like the other teams did. Such special considerations not only aided India but also became an inconvenience for others like South Africa and New Zealand, who were forced into exhausting last-minute travel simply because India’s fixtures were yet to be confirmed. With great power comes greater responsibility, and the powerful should use it cautiously. If not, it may eventually lead to alienating other cricketing nations, possibly leading to growing resentment and eventual conflict. India’s monopoly over the sport is undeniable, but if left unchecked, it could have lasting repercussions on the integrity of international cricket.
As the International cricketing season comes to an end with this event, it leaves behind a legacy of unforgettable moments, rising stars, and pressing questions about the future of world cricket. However, for now, these debates take a backseat as the cricketing world shifts its focus to India’s grand festival — the IPL. Over the next couple of months, fans will rally behind their favorite franchises, engaging in fierce debates and celebrations, while one of the biggest fanbases (RCB) still clings to the question: “E Saala Cup Naamde?”. But at this moment, India celebrates a triumph that reaffirms their dominance in world cricket, a moment their fans will cherish for years to come.
The Journal Club 
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