Rohit Loses Toss In Champions Trophy Final; No Matt Henry In XI As New Zealand Opt To Bat

India will take on New Zealand [Source: @RichKettle07/X.com]

It is a big day for all cricket fans, as India take on New Zealand in the Champions Trophy 2025 final at the Dubai International Stadium on March 9. This highly anticipated match marks the third time both teams are clashing in an ICC tournament final.

New Zealand have won the toss and opted to bat first against the Men in Blue, putting them in the field. Talking about the changes, India have made no change, while New Zealand have made one change their playing XI, bringing Nathan Smith in place of Matt Henry.

During the toss, Mitchell Santner revealed the reason behind opting to bat first. He said,

"We are going to have a bat first. Looks like a pretty good wicket. Similar to the one where we played India a week or so ago. Yeah, expect a few blue shirts in the crowd. We are up for the challenge. It is slightly different to the surfaces we had in Pakistan. India played extremely well and how well they went about their business. "

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma, the Indian captain, didn't mind bowling first, he stated, 

"Ahh... Look we have been here. We have batted first and bowled first as well in this tournament. We don't mind doing either. So, I don't mind batting second. It hasn't changed much. We have chased well in the previous game. We have won chasing a few games. It does give you a lot of confidence, takes the toss away from the game." 

IND vs NZ Champions Trophy Final: Playing XI's

New Zealand Playing XI: Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith, Kyle Jamieson, William O'Rourke

India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

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