Sunil Gavaskar dismisses 'unfair advantage' claims after Champions Trophy win
What's the story
Legend Sunil Gavaskar has dismissed allegations of an 'unfair advantage' during India's successful 2025 ICC Champions Trophy campaign.
The controversy erupted after India played all their matches, including the final, in Dubai.
The decision was taken because the Indian government refrained from sending the national team to Pakistan due to political reasons.
Consequently, some former cricketers and current players hinted that it gave an edge to Rohit Sharma's team.
Counterargument
Gavaskar refutes claims of 'unfair advantage'
Responding to the allegations, Gavaskar said the ICC had decided that India would play all matches at one venue, long before the tournament started.
He said any negative comments about the decision should have been made before the tournament began.
"Yes, there will be the carpers who talked about the advantage India had playing only at one venue and not having to travel between matches," he wrote in his Sportstar column.
Gavaskar's point
England's ICC trophy drought questioned
Further, Gavaskar questioned the validity of the 'home advantage' argument by citing England.
He asked why England, hosting several ICC tournaments before 2019, hadn't won any trophies until then.
This was in response to the criticism that India only triumphed due to their consistent venue and lack of travel.
The legendary cricketer emphasized that India's victory wasn't solely based on these factors.
Teamwork acknowledged
Rohit's captaincy praised by Gavaskar
Gavaskar credited India's success in the tournament to their well-balanced team and the contributions of different players at different stages.
He particularly lauded Rohit's captaincy, saying that under him, India have now won two ICC titles as captain.
"India won simply because it had a well-balanced team, and at different times in the tournament, different players played a game-changing role," he added.