In the second semi-final of Champions Trophy 2025 played at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, New Zealand performed brilliantly and defeated South Africa by 50 runs and made it to the final.
Centuries from Rachin Ravindra (108) and Kane Williamson (102) took New Zealand to a huge score of 362/6. Although David Miller’s (100*) explosive innings kept South Africa’s hopes alive, but the Kiwi bowlers created pressure and ensured victory.
New Zealand’s batting – Rachin and Williamson created a stir!
Batting first, New Zealand scored a big score of 362/6 in 50 overs.
Opener Will Young (21) got out early, but after that Rachin Ravindra and Kane Williamson took charge.
Both of them put the team in a strong position by making a partnership of 164 runs.
In the end, Glenn Phillips (49*) and Mitchell Bracewell (16) added quick runs and took the score past 360.
New Zealand’s top 5 scorers:
- Rachin Ravindra – 108 (101 balls, 13 1. Kane Williamson – 102 (94 balls, 10 fours, 2 sixes)
- Glenn Phillips – 49* (27 balls, 6 fours, 1 six)
- Daryl Mitchell – 49 (37 balls, 4 fours, 1 six)
- Michael Bracewell – 16 (12 balls, 2 fours)
Top 5 bowlers of South Africa:
- Lungi Ngidi – 10 overs, 72 runs, 3 wickets
- Kagiso Rabada – 10 overs, 70 runs, 2 wickets
- Wian Mulder – 6 overs, 48 runs, 1 wicket
- Marco Jansen – 10 overs, 79 runs, 0 wickets
- Keshav Maharaj – 10 overs, 65 runs, 0 wickets
South Africa’s batting: Miller’s century, but the rest of the batsmen failed
Chasing the target of 362 runs, South Africa had a bad start.
Ryan Rickelton (17) was out early, but captain Temba Bavuma (56) and Rassie van der Dussen (69) tried to handle the team.
However, Heinrich Klaasen (3) and Marco Jansen (3) were out early, which put South Africa under pressure.
David Miller (100) single-handedly made the match exciting, but the rest of the batsmen could not support him.
South Africa’s top 5 scorers:
- David Miller – 100* (67 balls, 10 fours, 4 sixes)
- Rassi van der Dussen – 69 (66 balls, 4 fours, 2 sixes)
- Temba Bavuma – 56 (71 balls, 4 fours, 1 six)
- Aiden Markram – 31 (29 balls, 3 fours)
- Kagiso Rabada – 16 (22 balls, 2 fours)
Top 5 bowlers of New Zealand:
- Mitchell Santner – 10 overs, 43 runs, 3 wickets
- Glenn Phillips – 3 overs, 27 runs, 2 wickets
- Matt Henry – 7 overs, 43 runs, 2 wickets
- Rachin Ravindra – 5 overs, 20 runs, 1 wicket
- Michael Bracewell – 10 overs, 53 runs, 1 wicket
Now there will be a great match, New Zealand vs India will clash in the final!
With this win, New Zealand have made it to the final of the Champions Trophy 2025, where they will now face Team India.
Both the teams have been in great form throughout the tournament, making the final a high-voltage contest.
Will New Zealand be able to win the Champions Trophy for the first time, or will India win another ICC trophy? Share your opinion in the comments!
ICC CT 2025 2nd Semi-Final NZ vs SA After Match Statement
Mitchell Santner [New Zealand captain]:
“It is a good feeling. Today we were challenged by a good side. We now look forward to playing India at Dubai. We have already played there. So, we know what to expect there. The cutters were holding in the wicket in the first innings, but Rachin Ravindra did really well. What we speak as a group is about keep applying pressure. We kept on chipping at the wickets. It was pleasing to get 3 wickets by myself.
With Ravindra and Glenn Phillips being able to bowl, it makes my job a lot easier. We were a bit unsure about how Matt Henry’s shoulder was. So, Phillips’ two wickets and Ravindra’s 5 overs were crucial. Henry is a bit sore, but he will be fine. Being there (in Dubai) and putting them (India) under pressure at times was great. We had a look at them, they had a look at us. I think you take what worked. For instance, knocking the top 3 quickly was pretty good.”
Temba Bavuma [South Africa captain]:
“It was above par indeed, they batted really well and anything 350 was tough on that track. From a batting point of view, we needed big partnerships, the once that we had wasn’t enough. Their top batters did the bulk of the scoring. When you are chasing a score of over 360, you needed two batters to do the job. They put us under pressure from the get go, even in the middle overs, they kept scoring and put us under pressure. We weren’t able to take wickets, with wickets in hand at the death, it was always going to be difficult. Kudos to their batters, Rachin and Kane.
When myself and Rassie were batting, ideally we would’ve wanted to keep going. Our middle is destructive, but unfortunately we couldn’t set the foundation for them. Soft dismissal for me and Rassie’s too. We left too much to the lower to order to do. It’s just those moments like in the beginning, that 125-1, we could’ve been more decisive. We need to be more ruthless, go for the kill. We need to have a chat as a team, see what other guys think and cash in on the key moment in the game.”
Rachin Ravindra is the Player of the Match! Here’s what he has to say:
It’s always a great feeling to contribute to the team, extremely satisfying to do it in a knockout game. To be fair, I didn’t start the way I would’ve wanted. Marco and Lungi at the start, but the partnership helped. Keep working on the ebbs and flows of the game. We were thinking about 300 run mark, it was holding up a lot.
Kane started accelerating, we thought there was more on and then GP came in batted well. It’s always what’s next in a tournament, but we’re going to enjoy this win tonight. Once we get to Dubai, we will be switched on.
