The Champions Trophy final begins today, and the first innings has already seen some thrilling on-field action. The team has also made some important decisions. The Kiwis had to make a forced change by substituting Nathan Smith for Matt Henry, which was one of their greatest decisions.
Unfortunately, Matt Henry’s shoulder injury sustained in the semi-final match against South Africa prevented him from starting in the final match versus India. Henry was the team’s top wicket-taker in the event, so this is a serious setback for them as well. Smith, who will be playing in his first Champions Trophy 2025 match, will also have large shoes to fill.
Matt Henry, who was devastated and upset after missing the big game, will undoubtedly find it difficult to accept, even though it would be frustrating for New Zealand.
Since he had a strong record versus India and was having trouble during the practice session prior to the final, everyone could feel the emotions. He claimed an amazing five wickets in the group stage encounter against the Men in Blue in his most recent appearance.
Watch the video below:
BREAKING: Matt Henry is OUT of the ICC Champions Trophy final with a shoulder injury
pic.twitter.com/qmBvTmVsiD
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) March 9, 2025
Kiwis put up a competitive total on the board
The first innings has ended, and the New Zealand team has ended up putting on a total of 251 on the board. The stars with the bat were Daryl Mitchel, with a hard-fought half-century (63 off 101 deliveries) and Michael Bracewell, with his unbeaten quickfire knock (53* off 40 deliveries).
Speaking of the performance of the Men in Blue, though they were slightly rusty in the field, the spinners still did a tremendous job and pulled back the match a bit. Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja kept the batters quiet and took the majority of the wickets as well.
India
