Champions Trophy 2025: South Africa to take return trip to Lahore from Dubai, semi-final schedule confirmed

In the Group A match, South Africa will now have to go back to Lahore to play the BlackCaps after New Zealand secured their second-place finish on the points chart after losing to India. The two teams will face each other at the Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday, March 5. It is noteworthy that if New Zealand had won the match, South Africa would have advanced to the first semi-final in Dubai.

Because of the uncertainty surrounding the Group A rankings, the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) decision was modified. Only when India vs. New Zealand, which is currently taking place at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DIC), is over will the final standings of the teams in that group be determined.

Before the match, an ICC internal message to teams had said, “This means we will not know which team (B1 or B2) will need to travel to Dubai until the conclusion of the New Zealand vs. India match on March 2.”

“As a result, to provide equity and as much preparation as possible for all teams, both teams progressing to the semifinals from Group B will travel to Dubai the day after their last group match in Pakistan,” said the statement.

The hybrid pre-tournament format gave rise to this arrangement, which allows India to play all of their matches in Dubai, including the semifinal and final (if they qualify).

At midday on Saturday, March 1, Australia, which finished second in Group B following their league match in Lahore on Friday, February 28, arrived in Dubai via a chartered jet. After training at the ICC Academy on Sunday, the Steven Smith-led team will square off against the Men in Blue in an exciting match on Tuesday.

On Monday, South Africa will train at the ICC Academy in Dubai.

Following that, they will return to Pakistan for the penultimate match before the championship match. Should India advance to the finals, the victor of the match in Lahore would have to fly to Dubai once more for the top match on Sunday, March 9.

“The team from Group B that is confirmed to play the Dubai semifinal will have a training session on Monday, March 3, with the opportunity to train at DICS,” the note from the International Cricket Council stated. It is unlikely that India would train on Monday before their semifinal match on Tuesday, March 4.

It is anticipated that New Zealand will be on the same flight. “The team from Group B that qualifies for the Lahore semifinal will travel from Dubai to Lahore on Monday on EK622, departing at 21:50,” the statement added.