Former Indian wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik thinks the Men in Blue have been the most impressive side in the Champions Trophy 2025 so far as they get ready for another crucial ICC quarterfinal match against Australia and India.
Karthik said that India has played good cricket throughout the tournament and should have no difficulty moving forward—as long as they keep up their present form—ahead of Tuesday’s highly anticipated semi-final.
“India’s cricket has likely been the finest in the competition in terms of quality. “I don’t see any reason they can’t win if they can continue playing good cricket,” Karthik told Sky Sports.
But despite India’s superiority, Karthik recognized that Travis Head was a crucial element that would jeopardize their plans. Known as “Travis Headache” by former India coach Ravi Shastri, the Australian left-hander has been a huge final thorn in India’s side.
Head’s outstanding 163 at The Oval last year helped Australia defeat India in the World Test Championship final, further increasing the task for India.
“Travis has been dubbed ‘Headache’ by Ravi Shastri since he has helped India win almost every major match. The pace at which he has scored runs and played has been disruptive for India and has relieved strain on the other Australian batsmen,” Karthik said.
The defending ODI World Cup winners, Australia, will be without a number of important players going into the semi-final, including Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Marsh, and Mitchell Starc.
Nasser Hussain, the former captain of England, feels that the Australians are wired differently for big-stage cricket, even with their diminished roster.
“Australia will not hold back. Although they lack talent, they have an incredible record in ICC competitions. Everybody in that locker room will have grown up watching a Cummins, Ricky Ponting, or Steve Waugh team and felt they were destined to win these championships. Hussain said, “They will think they can defeat a very strong India side, and they are not here to make up the numbers.”
