India vs New Zealand Head To Head In ICC Knockout Matches: History Favours Kiwis, Will It Change On Sunday?
India and New Zealand - the two best teams of the
ICC Champions Trophy 2025- will face off in the summit clash for the title. It's no secret that India will be big favourites to win the final, but New Zealand can't be taken for granted, and India would know that as the Kiwis have given them many heartbreaking blows in the ICC tournaments. On every occasion, India entered the game as the favourite, but it was New Zealand that came out on top. Will that change on Sunday? Looks likely, given that India defeated New Zealand in the last gam and they have the better team, given the conditions, but the Kiwis are known for fightbacks.
Inddoesn'tn't have a great record against New Zealand in ICC Knockout matches. The teams have met in four knockout games of the ICC tournaments, with New Zealand winning three games and India emerging victorious on one occasion. Interestingly, one of New Zealand's wins came in the ICC Champions Trophy final in 2000, when the Kiwis defeated India to win the title. The second instance was the 2019 World Cup semifinal, where New Zealand broke millions of hearts in India. New Zealand's dominance over India in knockout games was not limited to white-ball cricket, as the team also defeated them in the 2021 World Test Championship final. India, however, won the most recent knockout game against New Zealand - the semifinal of the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Spinners Give India An Edge, But New Zealand Has Weapons of Their Own
The spin quartet of Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Varun Chakaravarthy give India an edge in the match, but New Zealand also have a few quality options with the ball. The Kiwis certainly have the better pace attack, comprising Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, and William O'Rourke, but they also have a genuine match-winning spinner in Mitchell Santner and two handy backup options in Michael Bracewell and Glenn Phillips. India did beat New Zealand in the league game, but they'll have to be at the top of their game to beat New Zealand in the final.
