Lahore, March 6 After New Zealand sealed their showdown with India in the 2025 Champions Trophy final, premier batter Kane Williamson stated that the Rohit Sharma-led side have absolute clarity in the way they operate at the Dubai International Stadium, the venue for Sunday’s title clash.
New Zealand beat South Africa by 50 runs in Lahore and book their trip to Dubai to meet India for the second time in the competition on Sunday. The last time India and New Zealand met in a Champions Trophy final was in 2000 in Nairobi, where the Blackcaps emerged triumphant.
“I suppose having played there on a number of occasions; there's real clarity in how they want to operate. A little bit like our opportunity here, having played a number of times at this venue as well and I think that's part and parcel in cricket.
“So, it's just not something we're really looking too closely at. It's about the cricket that we want to play and take into account, obviously, the opposition, but be nice and smart come that final,” said Williamson at the end of the match at the Gaddafi Stadium.
New Zealand had lost to India by 44 runs in the Group A clash in Dubai last week, with Williamson top-scoring through a valiant 81, which means he does have an idea of the slow conditions at the venue. “It is what it is (as India play all games in Dubai). Our focus is the next match, the location of that match, the opposition, they're all factors. Obviously, we played India once there.”
“The conditions are different, so it's important that we try and take away some of those positives and be nice and clear in how we're trying to operate come two- or three-days’ time in the final. It's the nature of it and we're looking forward to the final and excited about it,” added Williamson.
Against South Africa, Williamson made 102 off 94 deliveries, his 15th century in this format, and was involved in a stand of 164 off 154 balls for the second wicket with Rachin Ravindra, who top-scored with 108 off 101 balls, his fifth hundred in the format and second of this competition.
“It's always great to bat with (Ravindra) … incredibly special talent. We missed him while he had his little injury for a while there, but (he) just took a couple of weeks off and came back and is batting beautifully. Great to watch. He goes out and he puts the team first and he plays with that freedom.”
“When we were out there batting together, there were moments where there were some good spells and it was a little bit challenging. We tried to feed off each other and keep each other focused on the job,” he concluded.
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