Virat Kohli turned his captaincy hat on during the Champions Trophy 2025 final against New Zealand on Sunday in Dubai, the video of which went viral on social media. Incidentally, India were rewarded in the next over off the bowling of Varun Chakaravarthy.
The incident took place after the third ball of the seventh over with Rachin Ravindra and Will Young in the middle. With Rachin Ravindra taking on the Indian bowlers at will, Rohit Sharma looked puzzled.
That’s when Virat Kohli stepped in to take the mantle and gave the Indian skipper some insights on field placements. Earlier, in the last over, Mohammed Shami had dropped Rachin Ravindra.
The insights worked well for India as India eventually got their first breakthrough in the next over in the form of Will Young off the bowling of Varun Chakaravarthy. That wicket triggered a mini collapse as New Zealand from 57/0 were reduced to 75/3 in the next couple of overs.
Earlier, New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner won the toss and opted to bat against India in the Champions Trophy 2025 final. New Zealand made one change, bringing in Nathan Smith for injured Matt Henry, while India named an unchanged playing eleven.
It was for the 12th time in a row that India captain Rohit Sharma lost the toss in an ODI. Notably, India had beaten New Zealand earlier in the tournament during the group stages. India had won the game by 44 runs which led Men in Blue top Group A.
India vs New Zealand playing XIs
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakravarthy.
New Zealand: Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Kyle Jamieson, Nathan Smith, Will O’Rourke.
