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South Africa should have no ill effects from their whistlestop and, in the end, pointless 18-hour trip to Dubai as they prepare to face New Zealand in Lahore in Wednesday's second semi-final of the Champions Trophy, according to batter Heinrich Klaasen.
New Zealand's Chris Gaffaney and England's Richard Illingworth have been named as on-field umpires for the first 2025 Champions Trophy semifinal between India and Australia in Dubai, said the International Cricket Council (ICC). For Tuesday's semifinal at the Dubai International Stadium, Michael Gough will serve as third umpire, while Andy Pycroft will take up the match referee's duties. Illingworth continues in Dubai, having overseen India's Group A clash with New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday. Gaffaney, on the other hand, had been due to umpire Australia's meeting with South Africa in Group B before it was abandoned due to rain in Rawalpindi.
Former Indian cricket team player Yograj Singh lashed out at Shama Mohamed for her controversial remark on India captain Rohit Sharma. Yograj didn't mince his words in his reaction to Mohamed's remark on the Indian skipper. He claimed that if he were the prime minister of this country, he would have asked her to "pack her bags and leave the country."
If there is one clash that Indian cricket fans truly look forward, apart from Pakistan match, is a game against Australia. Both India and Australia have two of the most dominant sides in the last few years. The Border Gavaskar Trophy between the two sides matches viewership of even the biggest sporting events and whenever the two sides face off in the shorter formats, the interest is unprecedented. The time has come again for another India vs Australia classic, this time at the Champions Trophy 2025 semi-finals.
Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Kamran Akmal has launched a scathing attack on the Mohammad Rizwan-led side after its early exit from the Champions Trophy. With zero wins in the bag, Pakistan failed to qualify for the Champions Trophy semi-finals after losing to New Zealand and India, while their final group game was washed out in Rawalpindi. Akmal blamed the lack of balance in the Pakistan squad as the reason behind the hosts early exit from the tournament. Even the show of the hosts lashed out at the selectors, saying that Pakistan's fate was decided the same their squad was announced.
Senior batter Tom Latham said New Zealand will take confidence from their recent win over South Africa in the tri-series when they face the same opponents in the semifinal of the Champions Trophy in Lahore on Wednesday. New Zealand lost to India by 44 runs in their final Group A match here on Sunday but Latham said it would have no bearing on the semifinal. Recently, New Zealand successfully chased 305 against South Africa in Lahore and then went on to win the tri-series, beating Pakistan in the final, and Latham feels those experiences will hold them in good stead on Wednesday.
Skipper Rohit Sharma struck down the notion of India having an unfair advantage in the Champions Trophy due to playing all their matches in Dubai, saying it is not their "home venue" and the pitches have thrown up "different challenges" to his side. Several former players from Pakistan, Australia and England have taken an exception to India staying in Dubai for the entire duration of the ICC showpiece, saying the move allowed them better chance to acclimatise to the conditions than other teams in Group A. "Every time, the pitch is giving you different challenges. The three matches that we played here, the pitch has behaved differently. This is not our home, this is Dubai. We don't play so many matches here, and this is new for us too," Rohit said during the pre-match press meet ahead of the semifinal against Australia.
Pakistan's Champions Trophy 2025 capitulation has once again exposed all the things that are going wrong in the country's cricket. Since the 2017 Champions Trophy, Pakistan haven't had much to show in the ODI format. The latest setback, in a tournament that it's hosting, has led to widespread criticism. Former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir took a step further while speaking about the captaincy transition from Babar Azam to Mohammad Rizwan. Both Babar and Rizwan are batting mainstays of Pakistan but their performances have been under the scanner of late.