Ganguly confident in India's chances for Champions Trophy final win
What's the story
Former Indian cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly has expressed confidence that team will win the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
The final match is scheduled against New Zealand at Dubai International Stadium on March 9.
"Best wishes to team India. It is a good team, and we hope it plays well," Ganguly told ANI.
"If we play well, we will win," he stated, further showing confidence in the team.
Path to final
India and New Zealand: A look at their journey
India remain unbeaten in the 2025 Champions Trophy, having claimed 4 successive wins, while New Zealand have thrived under Mitchell Santner's leadership, winning three and losing one.
The final serves as an exciting rematch of the 2000 ICC Champions Trophy, where New Zealand triumphed.
India also have a chance to avenge past knockout defeats to the Kiwis in the 2019 World Cup semi-final and the 2021 World Test Championship final.
Historical context
Previous encounters: India vs New Zealand
The two sides have played some intense matches in the past.
In their last group match, India defeated New Zealand by 44 runs.
Despite the emphasis on spin bowlers in the UAE, Matt Henry was the standout bowler for New Zealand, returning with figures of 5/42 off eight overs.
India's spinners also did well, with Varun Chakravarthy leading the pack with 5/42 in what was just his second One Day International.
Team composition
Squads for the Champions Trophy final
The Indian squad for the final features captain Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (w), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, and Arshdeep Singh.
Meanwhile, New Zealand's lineup includes Will Young, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Tom Latham (w), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, William O'Rourke, Daryl Mitchell, Nathan Smith, Mark Chapman, and Jacob Duffy.
Journey
India's road to the 2025 Champions Trophy final
India kickstarted their 2025 CT campaign with a dominant six-wicket win over Bangladesh.
The win was fueled by Mohammed Shami's 5/53 and Shubman Gill's 101*
They then beat arch-rivals Pakistan by six wickets, thanks to Kohli's 100* and Kuldeep Yadav's 3/40.
As mentioned, in their last group game against NZ, Rohit Sharma's men beat NZ by 44 runs on the back of Chakravarthy's 5/42.
Meanwhile, Kohli's 84-run knock and spinners' brilliance secured India's four-wicket win over Australia in the semi-final.
Road to final
A look at NZ's run in the Champions Trophy
New Zealand opened their campaign with a dominant win over Pakistan, powered by centuries from Tom Latham (118*) and Will Young (107).
They followed up with a five-wicket victory against Bangladesh, thanks to Michael Bracewell's 4/26 and Ravindra's 112.
However, they faced a 44-run defeat against India.
In the semi-final, they bounced back with a 50-run win over South Africa, driven by Ravindra and Williamson's respective tons.